


Halloween is for Criminals Too

by moondragon23



Series: Shules for the Holidays [1]
Category: Psych
Genre: Established Relationship, F/M, Halloween, Humor, Series Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-10-18
Updated: 2013-10-31
Packaged: 2017-12-29 17:39:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 26,656
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1008196
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/moondragon23/pseuds/moondragon23
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's almost Halloween and Santa Barbara's latest mugger is a big fan of the holiday. A fact Shawn discovers the hard way. Determined to unmask his mysterious assailant, Shawn and the gang must go undercover on the spookiest night of the year. Of course, things never go quite as planned. . .<br/>A tale of crime, love, and candy corn.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. An Unusual Suspect

**Author's Note:**

> I do not own Psych or any of its characters. All other publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. No money is being made from this work. No copyright infringement is intended. 
> 
> Halloween has always been one of my favorite holidays. So what better way to celebrate it then to pair it with my favorite tv show? I hope to have the whole story up by Halloween or soon after. So keep your fingers crossed life doesn't interfere with the plan.  
> This story takes place after season 7 if Trout never showed up.

Shawn walked up to the bar, eyeing the couple sitting there. They were engrossed in each other, not even noticing when he sat down next to them. He ordered a beer, watching them out of the corner of his eye. The man was dressed in a gray suit with a blue tie. The suit looked tailor made for his broad frame and made of high quality material. Definitely pricey.

The women was wearing a silky black dress, her brown hair loose around her shoulders. She appeared several years younger than her date. Everything about her outfit screamed middle class income. Except for the jewelry. They were of too high a quality for them to be anything but a gift from the man next to her.

They were leaning towards each other, talking quietly. The woman let out a small laugh, touching the man's arm. The two seemed very comfortable around each other. When the man turned, he was able to see his face reflected in the mirror behind the bar.

Yup, that's the guy.

He took a swig of his drink, planning his next move. Discarding several plans, he finally settled on one that would hopefully accomplish his goal without him getting punched in the face. Bracing himself just in case, he tapped the guy on the shoulder. “Hey buddy,” he said, adopting a drunken slur, “don't I know you from some where?”

The man turned. He took in Shawn's jeans, flannel shirt and t-shirt combo along with his “drunken” demeanor. “I don't think so,” he said scornfully.

Shawn grabbed the man's shoulder before he could turn away. “No, no, I swear I've seen you before. Let me get a good look at you.” He placed both hands on either side of the man's face and studied it from about three inches away.

The man threw Shawn's hands off. “Get off me!” he yelled, glaring at Shawn. His hands had curled into fists and Shawn braced himself for a punch.

“Jeff, calm down,” his date said, putting a calming hand on his shoulder.

Jeff glanced at her and took a deep breath. He was still glaring when he turned back to Shawn but at least he didn't look ready to hit him anymore. “If you even think of touching me again I will sue your ass for the little it is worth,” he said threateningly. He turned his back on Shawn and grabbed his date's hand. “Come on, honey, let's go.”

Shawn let them take a few steps before he stood up from his stool. “I remember now,” he said, calling after him. “It was that charity event on Tuesday. But weren't you with another woman then?”

Jeff stopped, shoulders tense.

“What's he talking about,” the woman asked, turning to Jeff. “You said you had a meeting Tuesday night.”

“Oh, he had a meeting all right,” Shawn said, sauntering over to the couple. “But not a work meeting. This was personal. Very personal.” He stuck his hands into his pockets and grinned at the man. “How is your wife, by the way?”

“Your married?!” the woman yelled.

“Amy, he's crazy. Don't listen to him,” Jeff said. He glared over at Shawn.

“Indent on his finger from wearing a wedding ring, he pays for most of his meals in cash, you always go back to your place, never his.” As he spoke, Jeff's face turned red. He took a menacing step towards Shawn, who quickly jumped back. “You can only call his cell; never his work or home numbers. And I bet he never takes you anywhere he might run into someone he knows, like a fancy restaurant or a play.” He shook his head. “Need I go on?”

“You'll pay for this,” Jeff snarled.

“Maybe you should pay less attention to me, and more attention to your girlfriend,” Shawn said, nodding his head at her.

Jeff turned and met the vicious glare of one seriously pissed off woman. Shawn was surprised Jeff wasn't vaporized on the spot. “You bastard!” she yelled, slapping him hard across the face. The blow forced Jeff to take a step back and earned an appreciative whistle from Shawn. The girl had some serious power. “We're over! And I'm keeping the jewelry!” She turned and forced her way through the growing crowd that had gathered to watch the scene.

Jeff looked at Shawn, face livid. “I don't know what game your playing, but it ends now,” he said menacingly. “You don't just come in here and humiliate me. And if any word of this gets back to my wife I'll –“

“You'll what, Jeff?” said a voice behind Shawn.

Jeff looked over Shawn's shoulder and his face paled. “Eileen?”

A woman stepped up next to Shawn. She was wearing a modest brown dress with her hair pulled back into a severe bun. She eyed Jeff coldly. “Do you have anything to say for yourself?”

“Honey, I can explain,” Jeff said quickly. “She's just a business partner. We had a few drinks while discussing a case and I guess she got the wrong idea. It's nothing.”

“That's not what Mr. Spencer said.” Eileen nodded towards Shawn. “He says you two have been seeing each other for five months now. Is that why you have to work late so often?”

“You hired a private investigator?” Jeff asked incredulously.

“Nope,” Shawn said. He put on hand to his temple. “Psychic. And I'm sensing you might want to watch what you say next in front of all these witnesses.”

Jeff looked around as if he just noticed the crowd of people surrounding them. He made an effort to keep his voice low as he turned back to his wife. “Let's go some place we can talk about his privately.”

Eileen stepped up to Jeff. She took off her wedding ring and threw it on the floor at his feet. “I want a divorce.”

“Eileen, please –“

Shawn winced as once again Jeff was slapped hard across the face. He wouldn't be surprised if Jeff had a big bruise on that cheek tomorrow.

“You'll be hearing from my attorney.”

She turned away, leaving Jeff standing there looking stunned. One hand slowly reached up to touch the cheek she had slapped.

Passing by Shawn, Eileen handed him an envelope on her way out the door. He shoved it in his pocket, keeping a watchful eye on the ex-husband.

Jeff bent down and with shaking hands picked up the wedding ring. He stared at it for a moment before putting it into his pocket.

His gaze when he looked at Shawn was borderline manic. “You're a dead man,” he said growled.

Shawn checked his wrist for a pulse. “Nope, still seem to be alive.”

Jeff snapped. He lunged at Shawn, closing his hands around the psychic's throat. Luckily, the bartender, aware of the possibility of a fight, already had a couple of guys nearby in the crowd. They moved in and quickly pulled Jeff off of Shawn.

Jeff struggled against their grip as they dragged him out of the bar. “I'm going to kill you. You hear me? You're a dead man, psychic.” He kept screaming obscenities all the way out the door.

Shawn walked over to the bar and sat down as the crowd slowly dispersed. The bartender came to stand in front of him. “Thanks for the help,” Shawn said, rubbing his throat.

“No problem,” the bartender replied. “Want me to call the police?”

“Nah,” Shawn said. “He'll calm down. A bigshot lawyer like him should realize how stupid it would be to come after me now.” He put his hand to his head in his classic 'psychic' pose. “I'm sensing he won't be a problem.”

“So you're really psychic?” the bartender asked skeptically.

“Yup,” Shawn said. “And I promise I won't tell your boss you're texting during work hours.” He had heard the tell-tale vibration of a cell phone when he sat down. He had also noticed the man had one hand under the bar and would glance down every few seconds, probably to check what he was typing. “Girlfriend?”

“You're good,” the bartender said. He held up his phone. “Just a friend. I'm telling him what happened. It's not something you see everyday, even in a bar.”

“I hope not,” Shawn said. “That would mean there's another exceedingly handsome psychic out there solving crime.” He held out his hand. “I'm Shawn, by the way.”

The bartender shook it. “Henry.”

Shawn hid a wince. It wasn't the guy's fault he had the same name as his dad after all. “So Henry, how about another beer before I go?”

“You got it.”

As Henry went to get the beer, Shawn's phone range. Glancing at the ID, he grinned before answering. “Hey Jules.”

“Hi Shawn,” Juliet replied. “I hope this isn't a bad time.”

“It's never a bad time when I'm talking to you,” Shawn said. He swore he could feel Juliet blushing over the phone.

She cleared her throat before continuing. “We got a lead on a case that Carlton wants to check out. Hopefully, it shouldn't take too long.”

Shawn pouted. “I thought we were going to have dinner tonight. Can't it wait until tomorrow?”

Juliet sighed. “You know how Carlton gets. And we've been stuck on this case for two weeks. We could use any lead we can get.”

“The case would have been solved already if I had been allowed on it,” Shawn muttered sullenly.

“If this lead doesn't pan out, the chief just might do that,” Juliet said. He could hear Lassiter yelling at her in the background to hurry up. “I've got to go. I'll see you when I get home. Big fat kisses.”

“Big fat kisses,” Shawn said. He hung up the phone as Henry returned.

“That your girlfriend?” he asked, setting the beer down in front of Shawn.

“Yeah.” Shawn reached into his pocket for his wallet, pulling the envelope out with it. “She's got to work late again.” He pulled some money out to pay for the drink.

“Keep it,” Henry said. “Your little act is going to get me some extra business tonight.”

“Thanks man,” Shawn said. He put the money back into his wallet. Taking a pull of his drink, he checked the envelope. He grinned when he saw the ten crisp hundred dollar bills. Not bad for a night's work.

“If that's how psychics are paid, I'm in the wrong field,” Henry said, watching Shawn put the money in his wallet.

“It has his perks,” Shawn said. He finished off the beer quickly and stood up. “Well, it was nice meeting you Henry, but I really should be going.” He leaned conspiratorially over the bar. “My name's spelled with an 'Sh', by the way.” He could see the reflection of Henry's text in the mirror behind the bar, which included a description of him.

Henry flushed. “Sorry.” He corrected the name before hitting send. Shoving the phone into his pocket, he looked at Shawn. “You need me to call you a cab or something?”

“Nah, I got my bike,” Shawn replied.

“Well, be careful,” Henry said. “There's been some muggings in the area recently.” He smirked at Shawn. “Though I suppose as a psychic you would see it coming.”

It was creepy how much Henry sounded like his father in that moment. “I'll keep it in mind. Later man.”

He quickly made his way through the bar, brushing off the attentions of several woman who had seen the drama between him and Jeff. A few years ago he would have loved the attention. Now he was glad when he finally got outside into the relatively fresh air. He didn't need those women anymore.

He already had his girl.

Shawn walked down the street to where he had left his bike. He hoped Juliet wouldn't have to work too late. Recently it seemed the only time he got to spend with her was when they were working a case together. Which was great, but he missed spending time with just her and not part of a group of people. He had hoped tonight it could just be the two of them. Alone.

A sound from a nearby alley dragged him from his thoughts. He stopped, listening carefully. The sound repeated; a soft scrap, followed by a moan.

“Hello?” Shawn called cautiously. He tried to peer down the alley, but the streetlights cast it into shadow. “Is anyone there?”

He heard an answering moan, louder this time. It sounded like someone needed help. He entered the alley, moving carefully as he waited for his eyes to adjust to the darkness. “Are you ok? Do you need help?”

He froze as he felt a presence at his back, along with something sharp poking him just below the ribs. He cursed silently as he realized he had just been tricked.

“Give me your wallet,” a man's voice said.

Shawn hesitated. “Look dude, I'd love to. But I'm two away from a free smoothie at Liquid Nirvana and I'd hate to have to start over from scratch.” He didn't want to lose the money he had just made on the case. He was trying to prove to Juliet he was responsible, which meant helping to pay some of the bills. Which he couldn't do without that money.

He tried to place where the man was standing behind him. If he could get the knife away from him. . . “If you're short on cash, I hear real estate is a good field to get into.”

Suddenly, the man's arm was around Shawn's neck, the knife at his throat. “This isn't a joke,” he hissed into Shawn's ear. “The wallet. Now.”

“Ok man, just calm down,” Shawn said nervously. The man wasn't holding him very tightly, but it was still a very sharp looking knife. But if he was careful, and time it right, he could still probably get away. “It's in my left pocket.”

The man slid a hand towards Shawn's pocket, momentarily distracted. Now was his chance. He brought an arm up under the one around his throat and pushed as hard as he could. At the same time, he ducked to the left to slip out of his grasp.

The man realized what he was trying to do and swung the knife. Shawn gasped as it sliced deeply into his arm. His left arm swung backwards, elbowing the man hard in the gut. His breath left in a whoosh, along with his strength. Shawn slipped out of his grasp and stumbled further down the alley, trying to put some distance between them.

He hid behind a dumpster, the only hiding spot in the alley. He could still hear his assailant gasping for air, so he took a second to examine his arm. It throbbed painfully and he could feel the sticky warmth of blood flowing down to his fingertips. He needed to try and stop the bleeding. With no convenient first aid kit lying around, or even a clean piece of fabric, he settled for gripping his arm tightly with his hand. He winced at the added pain it caused and hoped he was at least slowing down the bleeding.

Injury taken care of, he peeked around the dumpster. His attacker seemed to be recovering. Shawn probably had seconds before he was found. He squinted, trying to get a good look at him.

“Seriously?” Shawn muttered in disbelief. “Halloween isn't for another two weeks.” The man was wearing black pants with a white shirt and red vest. A long flowing cape and fangs completed the ensemble. The only divergence from a typical vampire costume was a black mask covering the upper half of his face.

The man seemed to have heard Shawn. His eyes looked on to the dumpster. Shawn stepped back quickly, but the man closed the distance between them faster than he thought possible. Shawn was shoved hard into the wall of the alley, his head colliding with the hard bricks. Pain flared behind his eyes as the knife was once again placed against his throat. “Don't move,” the man snarled.

Shawn stayed still this time, too dazed to put up a fight. He felt the man reach into his pocket and remove his wallet. “Don't move,” he repeated again. Shawn nodded slowly. The man quickly backed away, eyes on Shawn, then disappeared around the dumpster.

Head pounding, Shawn waited a few seconds before stumbling out into the middle of the alley. There was no sign of the man. He tried to head back to the street, but the ground started to sway beneath him. Stumbling to the wall of one of the buildings, he slid down it until he was sitting on the ground. He closed his eyes with a groan, wishing the world would stop spinning.

Female voices sounded at the end of the alley. “I thought I heard something.” The voices got louder as they neared Shawn's location. A startled gasp forced Shawn to open his eyes.

His was having trouble focusing, but he could make out three women standing in front of him. One of them crouched down next to him, looking at him with concern. “Are you ok?”

“Just peachy,” he mumbled.

Her eyes widened as she looked at Shawn's arm. “Oh my god, your bleeding! Cindy, give me your coat!” Her friend tossed her the coat, which she immediately applied to the gash on Shawn's arm. He winced at the pain it caused.

“Someone call for an ambulance,” she said. Her other friend pulled out a phone as Cindy looked on in concern.

“I'm fine,” Shawn protested. He tried to get up, then immediately fell back against the wall as the world started to spin again. He groaned, closing his eyes.

“Don't worry, the police will be here soon,” the first voice said.

“Great,” Shawn muttered. He swallowed hard, fighting back the nausea he was feeling. There was no way he was going to throw up in front of three women. He had some dignity left, after all.

He wasn't sure how much time had passed when he heard sirens in the distance. The police were almost here. He guessed he would have to talk to them, tell them what happened.

A thought occurred to him and he opened his eyes again. “You didn't see anyone suspicious before you came down here, did you? Long flowing cape? Pointed teeth?”

“No,” the woman said carefully. She exchanged a look with her friend before turning back to Shawn. “I think you hit your head. Maybe you didn't see what you thought you saw,” she said gently.

They both turned to look as voices sounded at the end of the alley. The police had arrived. “The police are here. I'm sure they'll be able to help you.” She patted his leg encouragingly.

Shawn sighed, closing his eyes again. She probably thought he was crazy or seeing things. The police would probably think the same thing. Hell, it sounded strange even to him.

Who mugs someone dressed as a vampire?

* * *

Carlton pulled the car up to the crime scene. Most of the activity seemed to be centered around an alley halfway down the street. Juliet could see a crowd of people standing outside a nearby bar, looking on curiously.

“Another mugging,” Juliet murmured as she got out of the car. “Do you think this is the same guy?”

“I hope so,” Carlton said. “Maybe this time the victim got a good look at the perp's face.” He slammed the door closed harder than necessarily. “We could use a break on at least one case tonight.”

Juliet didn't say anything. They had been pursuing a lead on a string of home robberies when the call had come in about the mugging. The chief had ordered them to check it out, leaving Carlton in a foul mood. Privately, Juliet didn't think the lead would have panned out anyway. But she wasn't going to tell him that.

They walked around the police barricade and entered the crime scene. Carlton walked over to the officer in charge. “What have we got?”

“It looks like the, uh, victim, was attacked in this alley,” the man said, looking unusually nervous. “CSU is looking it over.”

“Witnesses?” Carlton prompted.

“A group of women leaving the club found the, victim, and called 911,” he said, shifting uncomfortably. “They're being questioned.”

“Where's the victim now?” Carlton asked.

“Look, detective, about that,” the man said, swallowing nervously. “There's something you should know.”

“Just spit it out already,” Carlton snapped.

Before he could answer, Juliet heard a loud voice off to their right. She knew that voice.

Leaving Carlton behind with the stammering officer, she hurried out of the crime scene and over to the ambulance parked a little further down the street. Two medics were checking over someone sitting on the back bumper. “Shawn?”

Her boyfriend looked up at her. “Hey Jules,” he said with a smile. “Let me guess, you heard what happened and had to come rushing down here to make sure I was ok.” He gave her a sappy grin. “How sweet.” He hissed as one of the medics did something to his arm. “You know, that really hurts,” he whined.

“Knife wounds tend to do that,” she replied dryly.

“Knife wound?” Juliet asked. Walking around the medics, she got a good look at Shawn's right arm. A deep gash ran diagonally from his shoulder down nearly to his elbow. Blood was still flowing freely from the wound.

Shawn saw her grimace as she looked at the wound. “I've been afraid to look. Give it to me straight Jules.” He took a deep breath before looking at her seriously. “Are they going to have to amputate?” He scrunched his face up and looked away, bracing himself.

Juliet rolled her eyes at his theatrics. “No, but you are going to need quite a few stitches.”

“Do you think it will leave a scar?” Shawn asked, face brightening. “Chicks dig scars.” He waggled his eyebrows at Juliet suggestively.

“Probably not,” the paramedic said. Her badge read Susan. “It was a clean cut.”

Juliet hid a grin at the disappointed look on Shawn's face. “Any other injuries?”

“He hit his head pretty hard. I'm worried about a concussion.” She turned to look at Juliet. “It's been hard to tell if there's been any mental changes. Is he acting normal to you?”

“Nothing about Spencer is normal,” Carlton said, joining the group. “Though unfortunately that is how he acts most of the time.”

“Lassie-face!” Shawn cried. Carlton winced at the nickname. “Did you come to hear my harrowing and heroic tale?”

“Stop moving,” Susan said as Shawn flailed his arms. She managed to get him to hold his arm still long enough to finish bandaging the wound. Juliet saw him wince slightly at the rough treatment. He looked at her piteously. She ignored him.

Susan gathered up her supplies. “Good luck with him,” she said to the two of them. She walked around the side of the ambulance, giving them some privacy.

“I came to talk to a mugging victim,” Carlton said, in answer to Shawn's question. “I'm just unlucky enough that it's you.”

“Lassie, you have to be nice to me,” Shawn whined. He got up off the bumper and showed Carlton his arm. “I'm hurt.” He pouted up at the detective. “Kiss it and make it better?”

“I'm not kissing your damn arm,” Carlton snapped.

“Shawn, focus,” Juliet said. She was worried about her boyfriend. His face seemed a little pale and he was squinting in the bright lights. “Come on, let's talk over here.” She took his uninjured arm and lead him to a quiet, dark area of the street. “I thought you were working on a private case tonight.”

“I was,” Shawn said. “Cheating husband. The bar is where he likes to meet up with his girlfriend. She didn't know he was married.” He grinned at her. “It was epic Jules. You should have seen it. I made a cool grand off that case.” His face fell. “Though I guess the mugger has that now. And I should probably tell Gus to cancel his credit cards.”

“What happened next?” Carlton asked. He pulled out a notebook, ready to jot down any pertinent information.

“I had a drink, talked to the bartender a bit. Juliet called.” He grinned over at her. “Then I decided to head home.” He pointed to the street corner behind them. “My bike is parked down there, so I was walking toward it when I heard a noise.”

“What noise?” Juliet asked.

“It sounded like someone moaning, coming from the alley.” Shawn looked away, staring intently at the ground. “I thought someone might be hurt, so I went to check it out.” He sounded embarrassed.

“Let me guess, it was a trick to get someone stupid enough alone,” Carlton said scornfully.

Shawn nodded. “Yup, pretty much,” he said bitterly.

“You couldn't have known that,” Juliet said gently. “Someone could have really been hurt. It was the right thing to do.”

Shawn looked up at her with a small smile. “Thanks Jules.”

“So he tricked you into the alley,” Carlton said, ignoring the glare Juliet gave him. “What next?”

“He held a knife to me and asked for my wallet,” Shawn said.

“Where was he holding the knife?” Carlton asked.

“In his hand,” Shawn said. At Carlton's glare, he sighed. “First to my back. When I refused to hand over the wallet, he moved it up to my neck.” He tilted his head to the side and Juliet saw a small cut on he side of his neck.

“Did you give him the wallet then?” Carlton asked.

“No.” He looked embarrassed again. “I tried to distract him and slip out of his grasp. Got a cut on my arm for my trouble. Then he slammed me into the wall and took my wallet while I was stunned.”

“Shawn, what were you thinking?” Juliet burst out, startling him. He looked up at her, surprised at her anger. “You could have gotten killed. Why didn't you just give him the wallet?” In her head she could see what could have happened if her boyfriend hadn't been so lucky. She clenched her hands into fists to hide the trembling.

“I thought I could handle him,” Shawn said softly. She could see a hint of fear in his gaze as he looked at her. Realizing he knew how much worse it could have been, she felt her anger fading. “I'm sorry,” he said.

“Just don't do that again,” Juliet said, just as softly. He nodded, giving her a small grin. She returned it, feeling the last of her anger dissipating.

Carlton coughed loudly, ruining the moment. “Did you see what he looked like?” he asked.

“Yeah, but you're not going to like it,” Shawn said, smirking.

Carlton crossed his arms. “Try me.”

“I would describe him as a creature of the night,” Shawn said. His voice was low and mysterious. It rose higher with every sentence, building up to the reveal. “One who feeds on the blood of the unwary. Perhaps turns into a bat to travel to his next hunting grounds. In short, he was – “

“A vampire.” Carlton said.

Shawn deflated. “Yeah,” he said, looking annoyed his big moment was ruined. “How'd you know?”

“We've had twelve muggings in the last two weeks by someone dressed as a vampire,” Carlton said. “You make number thirteen.”

“Seriously?” Shawn asked. He looked at Juliet, who nodded. “Why am I just hearing about his now?”

“It hasn't been a high priority case,” Juliet said. “You're the first victim to get hurt.”

“Though that was more from his own stupidity,” Carlton muttered. He winced when Juliet elbowed him in the ribs.

“Shouldn't a psychic be the first person you call when there are vampire attacks?” Shawn argued.

“Vampires aren't real,” Carlton said. “It's just some nutjob in a costume. And how is a psychic supposed to help find a vampire anyway?”

“I could track him down through the nether regions,” Shawn said matter of factly.

Carlton winced. “I sure hope not.”

“I meant the underworld,” Shawn said, raising an eyebrow. “Mind in the gutter much?” He grinned at Juliet as the detective turned red and glared at him.

Juliet had to hide a grin of her own. “I'm sure the case will be given a higher priority now. You're the seventh victim this week alone.”

Shawn whistled. “That's quite the work ethic. Too bad he isn't putting that much effort into a real job.”

“That's why we need to figure out who this guy is,” Carlton said, face back to its normal coloring. “Have you angered anyone lately?” He gave Shawn a sardonic look. “More than usual, I mean?”

“Well, the cheating husband did try to strangle me,” Shawn said.

“Are you ok?” Juliet asked anxiously. She stepped closer to Shawn, tilting his head to check his neck.

Shawn grabbed her hands, holding them gently between his own. “I'm fine,” he said. “He barely had time to squeeze before security dragged him away.” He rubbed her hands gently and she could feel herself calming under his touch.

Juliet sighed. “How do you keep getting into these messes?”

He grinned wryly at her. “It's a gift.”

“What was his name?” Carlton asked. He was glaring at Shawn, eyes flickering to where he was holding Juliet's hands. She reluctantly let him go and took a step back.

“Jeff Donahue,” Shawn said. “He's a lawyer at Price, Postel, and Parma downtown.”

Carlton made a note of the information. “He's probably not the guy but I'd still like to talk to him. Did he threaten you in any other way?”

“You mean besides trying to strangle me and shouting he was going to kill me?” Shawn appeared to think about it for a moment. “He did say he would sue my ass for the little it was worth if I touched him again.”

Carlton raised an eyebrow. “Do I even want to know?”

“Probably not,” Shawn said cheekily. Juliet noticed a sudden glint in her boyfriend's eye before he stepped closer to Carlton.

“Hey Lassie, how much would you say my ass is worth?” Shawn asked. He turned around and thrust out said ass to give Carlton a good view.

“No,” Carlton said, not looking up from his notebook.

“Just ballpark it,” Shawn said. “Come on, it could be important to the case. It's got to be worth more than your bony butt.”

“I'm not bony,” Carlton said indignantly.

“Sure you are, Lassie. You're like a stick figure in a suit,” Shawn said.

“It's called keeping in shape,” Carlton said. “You should try it sometime.”

Shawn hissed. “Low blow. Juliet happens to find my form very sexy. Don't you honey?” He turned to give Juliet a better view of his butt. “Definitely better than Carlton's bony behind, right?”

“Stop talking about my ass!” Carlton yelled. Several people looked over at the little group. Carlton flushed at the attention as Shawn grinned.

“If you had just answered my question in the first place. . .”

“Can it, Spencer,” Carlton growled. “One more word and I will shoot you.”

“Kumquat.”

“That's enough!” Juliet yelled as Carlton reached for his gun. “Shawn, we're at a crime scene. _Your_ crime scene. Try to at least act like an adult.” Shawn at least had the decency to look apologetic.

Carlton smirked at Shawn, clearly glad to see him getting into trouble.

“And you,” Juliet said, rounding on her partner. The smirk changed into a look of surprise as he met Juliet's angry gaze. “You are not shooting my boyfriend. Stop letting his comments get to you. You look fine.”

“Jules – “

“O'Hara – “

“No more!” she said sharply. She glared at the both of them. Neither man could hold her gaze and quickly looked away. “Shawn, get in the ambulance.”

“Jules, I'm fine.”

“Shawn, you need stitches and you have a concussion.”

“My arm's fine. It's barely even bleeding now.” Shawn held up his arm for Juliet to see. “Besides, if I had a concussion, could I do this?” Before she could stop him, he started spinning in a circle.

Or at least tried to. Halfway through the first rotation, he lost his balance and started to fall. Carlton barely managed to catch him before he hit the ground.

“Sure your fine,” Carlton said, getting Shawn back on his feet. He had to continue holding him up as the man seemed unable to keep his balance.

Shawn's face was pale and he seemed to be having trouble getting his eyes to focus on her. “Jules, maybe I should go to the hospital,” Shawn said quietly.

Juliet moved over to Shawn's other side and the two of them helped her boyfriend over to the ambulance. Carlton stepped back as the paramedics took over but Juliet was reluctant to let Shawn go. She helped get him inside the ambulance and over to the stretcher. Only then did she step back to let the paramedics do their work.

They strapped Shawn in and placed an oxygen mask over his face. One person started checking vitals while Susan checked the wound on Shawn's arm. It had started bleeding again so she rebandaged it. When she was done she looked up at Juliet. “You riding with us?”

Juliet shook her head. “I just need to talk to him before you leave.” Susan nodded. Moving to put some supplies away, she left room for Juliet to get closer to Shawn. The other medic stepped away too, giving them a semblance of privacy.

Juliet sat on the seat next to Shawn. “I'll come pick you up as soon as we're done here. Wait for me. And don't even think about signing yourself out AMA.”

Shawn pulled the mask away from his face so he could talk. “Wouldn't dream of it,” he said softly, eyes closed. He looked absolutely miserable, so Juliet leaned down and gave him a kiss. He leaned into it as much as he could lying on his back, trying to draw it out as long as possible.

He smiled up at her as she pulled away. “Love you Jules.”

“Love you too,” she said with an answering smile. She readjusted the mask on his face, then ran her fingers softly through his hair. “I'll see you soon.”

She climbed out of the ambulance, turning to get one last look at Shawn. He gave her a little wave before the doors closed. Lights flashing, she watched the ambulance turn the corner and head off to the hospital.

She felt someone come stand next to her. “He'll be fine,” Carlton said.

“I know,” Juliet said quietly. Turning, the two of them headed back to the crime scene.

She noticed Carlton looking at her strangely out of the corner of her eye. “What?”

“'You look fine'?” Carlton asked. He coughed nervously. “Did you mean overall or –“

Juliet could feel her face turning red. “We are not having this conversation. Ever.”

“Ok. Fine with me,” Carlton said quickly.

The two of them stood there for a moment awkwardly.

“I should check on forensics,” Carlton said.

“I should check on the witnesses,” Juliet said at the same time.

Avoiding eye contact, the two detectives headed to opposite sides of the crime scene.


	2. A Day at the Spa

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it took so long to get this chapter up. Life kept getting in the way. Plus it ended up longer than I expected.  
> A special thanks to my awesome beta reader Redwolffclaw for editing this story so fast.

Shawn squinted in the sunlight as he got out of the car. He shielded his eyes with his hand, trying to hide a wince as the bright sunlight caused the throbbing in his head to increase.

Gus looked at him with concern. “Do you really think you should be here today?” he asked. “You don't look so good.”

“Dude, relax. I'm fine,” Shawn said. He slipped on a pair of sunglasses and carefully made his way around the car to Gus. If he walked slow, it was easier to keep his balance.

Gus watched Shawn's progress, shaking his head. “You should be in bed resting.”

“I can't, Gus,” Shawn said. “I have an undead mugger to catch.” Together the two of them made their way up the stairs of the police station. Shawn pretended not to notice Gus walking a step behind him, ready to catch him if he fell. His balance wasn't that bad. He just needed to lean on the railing a little more than usual.

Gus ran ahead of him and held the door open. Shawn couldn't keep from rolling his eyes. This overprotectiveness had to stop. He wasn't an invalid. He just had a headache and his arm was a little sore. “Thank you Jeeves,” Shawn said, nodding his head archly. “Be a good man and fetch me a smoothie.”

He had to duck inside quickly to avoid having the door closed on him. Mission accomplished, he thought with a grin. He pulled off his sunglasses, glad to be out of the bright light. He headed towards the Chief's office, figuring Gus would catch up eventually.

Juliet and Lassiter were no where to be seen. Good. Juliet wouldn't be any happier to see him here than Gus was to bring him. The doctor had told him to take it easy the next few days and to Juliet that meant staying at home doing nothing. Something Shawn would normally gladly embrace if he didn't have a case to solve.

“Chief!” Shawn said, entering the office.

“Mr. Spencer.” She seemed surprised to see him. “I heard what happened. Shouldn't you be at home resting?”

“I'm fine,” Shawn said, resisting the urge to roll his eyes. What was this, everyone baby Shawn day? He walked over and sat in one of the chairs in front of her desk. “I'm here to offer up my services.”

“I appreciate the gesture but we don't have a use for them at this time,” Vick said.

“Come on, Chief,” Shawn said. “This guy's gone after thirteen people already and I know you don't have any leads. Besides, who better to go after a member of the undead than a psychic?”

“You do know he's not really a vampire, right?” Vick asked.

“Either way, we need to find this guy before there is a victim number fourteen,” Shawn said.

“I agree,” Vick said.

“Great!” Shawn said. “I'll need to look over the previous case files and –”

Vick held up a hand, cutting him off. “But I can't allow you to work a case in which you were a victim.”

“But I know I can find this guy,” Shawn insisted. He winced at a sudden sharp pain at his temples. He tried to rub his head casually as he continued. “You need me on this.”

“I need you to go home,” Vick said, watching him carefully. “You are obviously unwell and I won't have you collapsing at a crime scene.” Her face softened. “Come back when you're feeling better and I might have something for you. Until then, get some rest.”

Shawn sighed. He knew when he was beat. He got up slowly from the chair. “I'll hold you to that, Chief,” he said. She just nodded, watching him as he left the room.

Gus met him outside the door. “How'd it go?”

“How do you think?” Shawn replied grumpily. “She thinks I'm not well enough to work any case, let alone the mugging.” He rubbed his head again, wishing he had remembered to grab a bottle of aspirin before leaving the house.

“She's probably right,” Gus said. “You look like crap.”

Shawn shot Gus a dark look. “Thanks for the pep talk Gus. I feel loads better now,” he said sarcastically. He walked away from Gus, heading to Juliet's desk. Maybe she had left the casefile out on the muggings.

Looking through the files, he didn't see anything about the muggings. He did, however, see files relating to a string of home burglaries. He remembered Juliet telling him last night that they were stuck on a case and guessed this was probably the one she was talking about. Intrigued, he sat down and started looking through them.

“Juliet's not going to be happy if she catches you going through her files again,” Gus said, coming to stand next to Shawn.

“Good thing I have a lookout then,” Shawn said. He grabbed another folder and started flipping through it. “Would you rather I go through Lassie's files? You remember what happened last time.”

Gus shuddered. “It wouldn't have been so bad if you hadn't spilled that smoothie all over his desk.”

“Gus, I clearly recall it being you who knocked over the smoothie,” Shawn said, glancing up at him. “Which you never paid me back for, by the way.”

“That's because I paid for the smoothie in the first place, Shawn,” Gus said, getting aggravated. “And I _wouldn't_ have knocked it over if you had listened when I told you Lassiter was coming the first time.”

“I just needed a couple more seconds to solve the case,” Shawn said, flipping through yet another file. He narrowed his eyes as something caught his attention. He grabbed another file, quickly flipping through it. If he was right. . .

Shawn slammed the file shut and looked at Gus with a cocky grin. “I just solved the case.”

“You did not,” Gus said.

“Did too.”

“Who did it then?”

Shawn hesitated. “I haven't quite worked that out yet.”

“Do you know how they did it?” Gus asked.

“No,” Shawn said slowly.

“Then how did you solve the case?” Gus asked exasperated.

“Let me rephrase that,” Shawn said. “I have a hunch that will lead to the solving of the case.” He started to spread his arms, but stopped when the movement pulled painfully on his knife wound. He settled for a smug grin. “Even with a head injury, I still got it.”

“You got something,” Gus muttered.

“What are you doing?” asked a voice behind him.

Spinning the chair around, he looked up to see Juliet and Lassiter standing behind him. He glared at Gus. “Worst. Lookout. Ever.”

Juliet crossed her arms, frowning at him. “Didn't we have a discussion about you going through my files?”

Shawn pretended to think about it for a minute. “Did the discussion involve tacos in any way?”

“Shawn!” Juliet snapped. Behind her, he could see Lassiter grinning, enjoying the fact Shawn was in trouble.

“I found you a lead,” Shawn said placatingly. He put a hand to his head. “I'm getting heat and moisture and little slices of cucumber. I'm also seeing someone with magic hands soothing away pain and tension. Possibly a happy ending.” He grinned lecherously at Juliet, who rolled her eyes.

“A spa?” Lassiter asked skeptically.

“The Flowing Springs Spa to be exact,” Shawn said.“I'm seeing a dark presence, searching through the victims belongings while they are otherwise occupied. Making copies of their keys. Someone who had could get into the client files to get the victim's address.”

“Makes sense,” said Gus.

“Several of the victims did mention having an appointment the day of the robbery,” Juliet added.

“Even if that is the case, there is no connection to the rest of the burglaries,” Lassiter argued.

“Are you sure about that Lassie?” Shawn asked slyly.

Lassiter leaned over Shawn and grabbed a file off the desk. “Mr. and Mrs. Robinson. Home broken into on the 14th. Over $2,000 in home theater equipment stolen. Mr. Robinson was at work. Mrs. Robinson was at her monthly book club meeting. No mention of the spa.”

“Their anniversary was two weeks ago,” Shawn said. He remembered seeing a calendar with the date circled and several congratulatory cards in the crime scene photos. “I bet Mrs. Robinson would want to look nice for her dinner with Mr. Robinson.”

Lassiter threw the file on the desk and grabbed another. “Mr. and Mrs. Rodriguez. Home broken into on the 11th. Both working at the time.”

Shawn put a hand to his temple. “I'm sensing a family member was recently visiting who would have been a frequent visitor to the spa.” The wife had mentioned in her statement that her sister had left a couple days before the robbery. Judging by the family pictures on the mantle, the sister looked like she practically lived at a spa.

Lassiter threw down the file and crossed his arms. “Mr. and Mrs. Johnson. On vacation in Bermuda for the past month. House-sitter reported it on the 13th,” Lassiter said.

“House-sitters need keys to the home they are sitting for,” Shawn said pointed out.

“You have no proof that any of these people actually went to that spa,” Lassiter said.

“That is something easily remedied by asking them,” Shawn said. “Or you can go to the spa and find out for yourself.”

“Maybe we should check it out,” Juliet said.

“O'Hara,” Lassiter said, sounding betrayed. “We can barely trust what he says when he isn't suffering from a head injury.”

“We don't have any other leads,” Juliet said.

“Fine,” Lassiter growled. He turned to Shawn and Gus and pointed. “You two, stay here.”

“But you only got this lead because of me,” Shawn complained. He got up, holding the edge of the desk to hide his unsteadiness. He just got up too fast, that's all.

“You're not hired on this case,” Lassiter said. “Go home. Get some rest.” His gaze flickered to where Shawn was leaning on the desk to keep his balance. Shawn swore he saw a flash of concern in the detective's eyes.

“You too?” Shawn asked incredulously. He must have entered the Twilight Zone if Lassiter was worried about him. “I'm fine. My head's just a little sore.”

“You have a concussion, Shawn,” Juliet said. “And the cut on your arm needed nine stitches.”

“Dude, maybe we should go,” Gus said quietly. “You're looking a little pale.”

“Would everyone just back off?” Shawn snapped. All the arguing was just making his headache worse. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, trying to push the pain back. He was pretty sure passing out would not help his cause.

“Shawn?” Juliet asked tentatively.

He opened his eyes to see three concerned faces looking at him. Great. “I'm fine,” he said forcefully, though he could tell none of them believed him.

“What's going on out here?”

They all turned to see Vick exiting her office, a frown on her face. She looked over the four of them before focusing on Shawn. “Mr. Spencer, I thought I told you to go home.”

“I had a vision about the burglaries,” Shawn said. He stood up straighter, trying to project healthiness. “I might be able to divine more if I can help check out the lead.”

“Lassiter?” Vick asked, turning to him.

Lassiter sighed. “It seems solid enough,” he said grudgingly.

Vick turned back to Shawn, eyeing him carefully for several moments. “You are to stay out of the way and observe only,” she said finally. “No investigating the scene, no chasing suspects. No physical activity of any kind besides breathing.” She turned to the two detectives. “You see anything that makes you worried about his well-being, send him home.”

“Thank you Chief,” Shawn said.

“Don't make me regret this,” Vick replied. She turned and walked back into her office.

Shawn clapped his hands together and turned to look at Lassiter. “You heard her Lassie,” Shawn said. “Let's go.”

“Fine,” Lassiter grumbled. “O'Hara, I'll meet you at the car.” He turned and stalked out of the station.

Juliet looked at Shawn. “Are you sure you're okay to do this?” she asked.

“It's just a headache,” Shawn said dismissively. “Besides, you heard the chief. I'm just there to observe. Nothing else.”

“Right,” Juliet said slowly. “And you would never disobey an order from the chief.”

“Of course not,” Shawn said innocently. She still seemed unsure, so he gently grasped her shoulders and looked into her eyes. “I promise if I start feeling worse, I'll leave,” he said softly.

She reached up and gripped one of his hands. “You'd better,” she said.

He leaned in closer, face inches from hers. “No more lies,” he said, reminding her of the promise he had made after they got back together.

She nodded. “Ok then.” She gently slipped out of his grip. “I'll see you there.” She grabbed her purse and headed out of the station.

Once she was out of sight, he bent down and rummaged in one of the drawers of Juliet's desk. Pulling out a bottle of aspirin, he swallowed four dry and stuck the bottle in his pocket.

“Let's go Gus.” Ignoring his friend's worried look, he led the way out of the station.

* * *

The Flowing Springs Spa was located on the outskirts of Santa Barbara. It was housed in a large wooden building surrounded by trees and various types of shrubbery. The whole feel was of a hidden retreat up in the mountains somewhere, miles away from civilization, which was impressive considering there was a busy shopping mall a couple miles down the road.

“Those are some fancy digs,” Shawn commented, exiting the car. “I worked for a landscaping company for two weeks and I know that fake forest look costs a fortune. Which is probably how much it costs to come here.”

“It's actually very reasonably priced,” Gus said. “Which is what makes it one of the most popular spas in the area.”

“And you know this because. . .?” Shawn asked.

“This level of perfection takes upkeep, Shawn,” Gus said. “We're not all in a committed relationship you know. I need to look my best for the ladies.” He thumbed his nose, trying to look cool.

“I swear, one of these days I'm going to look over and find out you turned into a lady,” Shawn said. “You spend way too much time worrying about your looks.”

“Says the guy that stills goes for mani-pedis with his girlfriend,” Gus shot back.

“And my cuticles have never looked healthier,” Shawn said.

“Would you two hurry up?” Lassiter yelled. He and Juliet were already at the entrance, waiting for them.

“We're coming Lassiekins. Don't get your panties in a bunch,” Shawn called back. He and Gus started up the gravel path, walking slowly. Partly it was to piss Lassiter off, but partly because the bright sunlight was once again making Shawn's head throb. He didn't want to be told to leave before they even got inside.

Lassiter glared at them when they finally reached the entrance. “About time. Any slower and a snail could have beaten you here.”

“Snails can be surprisingly fast,” Shawn said. “Especially when they're dosed with nitrous.” Juliet was looking at him carefully, knowing his slowness wasn't all an act. He met her gaze steadily, smiling slightly to show her he was okay.

“That's true,” Gus added.

Lassiter sighed. “Just get inside,” he said, opening the door for them.

“Aw, Lassie, what a gentleman, holding the door open for us,” Shawn said sweetly. Ignoring the detective's murderous look, he gestured to Juliet. “Ladies first, of course.”

“Thank you, Shawn,” she said, passing him to enter the building. Shawn and Gus followed her, with Lassiter bringing up the rear.

Stepping inside, the first thing Shawn noticed was the overabundance of water features. There was one in every corner of the spacious lobby and a large fountain in the center. A welcome desk was situated on the back wall with an open doorway behind it. No one was there. Lassiter rang the little bell on the counter, crossing his arms as he waited impatiently for someone to appear.

“Dude, if there was ever a room designed to make you have to pee, this is it,” he whispered to Gus. They stopped next to the fountain, listening to the sound of falling water.

“You got that right,” Gus said. After a second he started fidgeting and looking around the room carefully.

“You have to pee, don't you?” Shawn asked with a smirk.

Gus glared at Shawn. “You know I had a large smoothie before coming here.”

“Yeah, like two hours ago,” Shawn said. “And you peed twice since then. Your bladder must be the size of a thimble.”

“Suck it, Shawn,” Gus said.

Shawn winced. “Dude, seriously, please think about what you say before it comes out of your mouth.” He pointed towards a hallway off to their right. “Bathroom is probably that way.”

As Gus hurried off, a man appeared from the back and approached the counter. He had brown hair, average features and the toned build of someone who works out regularly. In short, he was the perfect non-threatening person to man the front desk of a spa. “Can I help you?” he asked.

Lassiter held up his badge. “Head Detective Carlton Lassiter, SBPD. We need to speak with someone in charge.”

“That would be me until the boss comes back from lunch,” the man said. He held out his hand. “Eric Kingston, pleased to meet you.”

Lassiter looked at his hand with disdain. “Right. So when will your boss be back?”

Juliet shot an exasperated look at her partner before extending her own hand towards Eric. “Detective Juliet O'Hara, and what my partner should have said is we need your boss's permission to look through your client files.”

Eric shook her hand. “Nice to meet you detective. Might I say, you are one of the most beautiful police officers I have ever seen.”

“Thank you,” Juliet said, blushing slightly.

Shawn pushed his way forward, wrapping his uninjured arm around Juliet's waist. “I couldn't agree more. So how about your boss then? Are we talking a few minutes or what?”

Shawn saw a flash of something in Eric's eyes as he looked at the psychic. It was gone before Shawn could identify it, replaced by a slight frown. “I'm sorry, who are you?” he asked politely.

“Shawn Spencer, Head Psychic of the SBPD and boyfriend of the lovely detective standing next to me. The blonde, not the grumpy fellow.” Shawn leaned in towards Eric. “FYI, he's already taken,” he said in a loud whisper.

Lassiter growled under his breath as Eric looked skeptically at Shawn. “I don't believe in psychics.”

“Then at least you're not a complete idiot,” Lassiter cut in, before Shawn could answer. “Your boss?”

“Right,” Eric said, shaking his head slightly. “He should be back in a few minutes. You can wait in his office, if you like.”

“Fine.” Lassiter turned to look at Shawn. “You two – ” He stopped as he realized someone was missing. “Where's Guster.”

“He had to run off to the little boys room as soon as we got here. I think it's just number one, but with Gus, you never know.” He grinned cheekily at Lassiter. “I can go find him if you like. Wouldn't want him to get lost in such a big place looking for us. Who knows what could happen to him.”

“Guster's a grown man. He'll be fine,” Lassiter said. “It's _you_ I don't trust wandering around.”

Shawn sighed. “OK, I confess. I may need to go as well.” He looked piteously at Lassiter. “Are you really going to tell me I can't Lassie? That just seems cruel.” Shawn stepped quickly away from Juliet, dodging an elbow aimed for his side.

Lassiter glared at him for a long moment. “Fine. But come straight back here when you're done. And no snooping around.” He turned back to Eric, who looked confused by the conversation. “Lead the way.”

The two detectives went around the desk and followed Eric through the doorway. Shawn pretended to walk off until he was sure they were out of sight. Then he snuck back to the desk. Going to the computer, he quickly called up the appointment schedule for the last two months and skimmed through it.

Gus walked back into the room, heading quickly over to Shawn. “Where are Lassie and Juliet?”

“Waiting to speak to the boss,” Shawn replied. Having gotten what he needed, he returned everything to how he found it and came around the desk. “Let's go.” He headed across the room towards the hallway Gus had just returned from.

“Are you sure they went this way?” Gus asked, following him.

“Of course not,” Shawn replied. He opened a door and peeked inside. Shaking his head, he moved further down the hallway. “The offices are in the back.”

“Then why are we here?” Gus asked. “Chief Vick told you to just observe.”

“I am observing,” Shawn said. “I'm observing this hallway I happen to be walking down, for instance.” The next door he tried was locked. He dismissed it and moved on. “She didn't specify what I was supposed to be observing.”

“You know what she meant, Shawn,” Gus said.

“Do I? I am suffering from a head injury, after all.” Opening the next door, he looked inside and smiled. “Bingo.”

The room they entered was set up for massages. A massage table sat in the center next to another smaller table covered with various lotions, oils, and a CD player. The room was wood paneled, with shelves every few feet holding candles and incense. For the ambiance, Shawn supposed. It did help give the space a warm, relaxing feel.

“What are we doing in here?” Gus asked.

Shawn walked over to the cabinet in the corner and started looking through it. “All the victims had massage appointments, all with the same person. Isabella.” His mind conjured up the image of a tall dark haired beauty, dancing the salsa at a Spanish night club.

Gus had walked over to the table of massage oils. “You think she did it?” Gus asked, looking over the various bottles.

Shawn shook his head. “She was working during most of the robberies, but it's too much of a coincidence for her to be uninvolved.” He went over to the wall and poked through the items on one of the shelves.

“What are you hoping to find? A list of the victims houses? Some of the stolen merchandise?” Gus asked skeptically. “If she's smart enough to come up with this plan, I doubt she would leave any clues here.”

“What about this?” He moved one of the candles, revealing a small recording device.

“What does that have to do with the robberies?” Gus asked, puzzled.

“Think about it. Not all the victims were at massage appointments on the day of the burglary. So how did they know the houses would be empty?” Shawn pointed at the device. “Because someone questioned them about their daily habits, probably claiming she was trying to address the source of their stress. Then all she had to do was play back the tape and see which clients would be the most easily targeted.”

“What about the keys?” Gus asked.

“She works here. It would be easy for her to get access to the lockers where her client's belongings were kept,” Shawn said.

“Great. Now let's go before someone catches us in here,” Gus said.

Footsteps echoed down the hallway, coming closer. Shawn had just enough time to replace the candle and take a few steps away from the shelf before a petite blond woman entered the room.

She stopped short at the sight of Shawn and Gus. “What are you doing in here?” she asked, glaring at them.

Shawn guessed she was the masseuse. She did have a dancer's lean build but otherwise bore no resemblance to the woman in his mind. “Isabella, right? I'm your 11 o'clock appointment.”

“Mr. Chen?” she asked skeptically.

“I find the need to use aliases so the general public is unaware of my whereabouts,” Shawn said.” “I'm sorry for the confusion but as a multigazillionaire you can never be too careful.”

“And him?” she asked, pointing to Gus.

“My bodyguard, Jacki Li,” Shawn said. “He has many skills but unfortunately, massage is not one of them. Or martial arts, or proficiency with any weapon. He's really more of a faithful pet than anything. Though he does an excellent job with my laundry.” He smiled fondly at Gus, who glared at him in return.

“Very well then,” she said, not looking entirely convinced. “Take off your shirt and lie face down on the table.”

“I'd prefer to leave the shirt on. Wouldn't want you to swoon at the sight of my impressive abs,” Shawn said, winking at her. In truth, he never removed his shirt around strangers if he could help it, even at the beach. He'd had the scar on his chest for years now, but he was still self-conscious about it.

“Fine, then get on the table,” Isabella said brusquely.

Shawn did as she asked, getting comfortable as he watched her get ready. He had seen in the schedule she was booked up for weeks. He wondered how she could be such a popular masseuse with her attitude.

The minute she touched his back, he knew. He melted as her strong, supple hands worked him over. It didn't matter about her attitude or looks. Hell, she could have insulted him and his entire family and he still would come back for more.

“Your very tense, Mr. Chen,” Isabella said. “What do you do for a living?”

“Detective,” Shawn said without thinking. He sighed as another point of tension was eased away.

“Sounds stressful,” she said. “Long hours?”

“Yeah,” he said, letting out a sound embarrassingly close to a whimper as she paused to adjust her position. He realized he was telling her more than he should but was too blissed-out to care at the moment. He let out a sigh of relief as her hands returned to her work.

He groaned as she expertly loosened a knot under his shoulder blade. Maybe he had been wrong about her connection to the burglaries. No way a woman with such magic hands could be a criminal. He let himself completely relax, figuring after last night, he deserved it.

He wasn't sure how much time had passed when he heard someone calling his name.

“Uh, Mr. Chen?” Gus asked hesitantly. “You might want to get up now.”

“What?” Shawn asked lazily. Gus nodded urgently at the door. It was cracked open and he could hear voices in the hallway, rapidly approaching them. His mind still sluggish from the amazing massage, it took him too long to recognize the voices and realize what Gus was trying to tell him.

Juliet, Lassiter, and a man Shawn didn't recognize walked in to find him still lying on the table with Isabella massaging his back.

“Shawn! What the hell are you doing?” Juliet asked angrily.

“Hey Jules,” he said nervously. “So, a funny thing happened on the way to the bathroom. . .” His voice trailed off under Juliet's glare.

“What's going on?” Isabella asked, walking around the table to stand in front of the newcomers.

“These detectives would like to ask you some questions about some recent robberies,” the man said. Shawn guessed he was the boss that Lassiter and Juliet had been waiting to talk to.

“I don't know about any robberies,” Isabella said.

Shawn sat up on the table, putting a hand to his head. “I'm sensing that isn't quite the truth.” He pointed to a shelf behind him on the wall. “You might want to check over there.”

Lassiter went to the shelf Shawn indicated. He quickly found the recording device. “Well, what do we have here?” he asked, picking it up carefully with his handkerchief.

“It's not mine,” Isabella said quickly.

“That's what they all say. Tell me, Mr. Russo, does any other masseuse use this room?” Lassiter asked.

Mr. Russo shook his head. “Isabella is popular enough to keep this room booked on her own.”

“I rest my case,” Lassiter said smugly.

“But what does that thing have to do with robberies?” Isabella asked.

“Someone knew when the victims would be out of the house,” Shawn said, getting everyone's attention. “If you check the recordings, you'll hear Isabella asking about their daily schedule.” He climbed off the table and grinned at Lassiter. “By the way Lassie, you could learn a thing or two from her about interrogation. She certainly has a more pleasant way to get answers then you do.”

“Miss Brown, we're going to have to ask you to come with us down to the station,” Lassiter said.

“Is that really necessary?” Mr. Russo asked. “She has appointments all day. Maybe she could talk to you afterwards.”

Lassiter glared at him. “Are you saying her pampering spoiled rich people is more important than keeping the citizens of Santa Barbara safe?” he asked.

“To be fair, she is very talented,” Shawn said. He flinched as both Juliet and Lassiter glared at him.

“Of course not,” Mr. Russo said reluctantly.

“Miss Brown,” Lassiter said, gesturing for her to precede him. She glared at him before turning and stalking out of the room, head held high. Of course, high for her was only about five feet, so it wasn't very intimidating. Lassiter followed her out. Mr. Russo left too, presumably to do damage control.

That left Shawn, Gus, and Juliet in a room that was rapidly building with tension. Unsurprisingly, Gus ducked out next. “I'll meet you outside,” he said, before dashing from the room.

Shawn looked cautiously at Juliet. “You're mad,” he said quietly.

“Yes, Shawn, I am,” Juliet said. “You promised you would be careful. You were just supposed to observe. And don't give me that crap about Vick not specifying what you were supposed to observe,” she said as he opened his mouth to say just that. “You know what she meant.”

“I did find a suspect,” Shawn said in his defensive.

“A suspect we were already on to after looking at the client files,” Juliet snapped. She was really angry, more so than the situation called for. Just like she was last night, when she was worried about him.

“You're right, I'm sorry,” Shawn said softly. “I just thought I could help.”

She sighed, her anger suddenly deflating. “We might not have realized the significance of the recording device without you.”

“Might?” Shawn asked.

“Don't push it,” Juliet said, but there was no heat behind her words.

Shawn walked up to her and took her hands. “I'm sorry if I worried you, but I was perfectly safe. Gus was with me the whole time and everything. And I feel much better after that fantastic massage.” He rubbed her hands softly, smiling at her. “So are we good?”

Juliet returned the smile, shaking her head. “How do you always manage to talk your way out of trouble?”

“My charmingly good looks,” Shawn said proudly. “Plus you love me.”

“I do.” She gave him a quick kiss before stepping back. “We should go. Lassiter's probably waiting for us.”

Shawn nodded and they both left the room and returned to the lobby. Gus was waiting for him by the door.

“I'll meet you back at the station,” Shawn said to Juliet. She walked out the door as he stopped next to Gus.

“Everything ok?” Gus asked.

“Fine,” Shawn said. At Gus's disbelieving look, he elaborated. “Seriously. She's just been worried about me today, that's all.”

“Her and me both,” Gus said. “Though I suppose you were lucky. If she had come in to that massage while you were moaning, things might not have gone so well.”

“I was not moaning,” Shawn said.

“Dude, it was embarrassing,” Gus said. “Those are sounds best kept to the privacy of the bedroom.”

“Why just the bedroom?” Shawn asked lewdly.

Gus glared at him. “Let's just go.” He opened the door, leading the way outside.

Exiting the building, the bright sunlight immediately blinded Shawn. He closed his eyes tightly as his headache quadrupled and he was hit by a wave of dizziness. He felt Gus catch him as he started to fall. “Shawn? Are you ok?”

“Fine,” Shawn gasped out, gritting his teeth against the pain. “Just need to sit a minute.” He let Gus lead him off the path and into the shade of a nearby tree. His friend gently lowered him down and he relaxed back against the rough bark, eyes closed.

“Shawn!”

He heard a set of footsteps rapidly approaching. He cracked open his eyes to see both Gus and Juliet looking at him worriedly. “There's no talking you out of it this time, is there?” he asked.

“You're lucky I'm not insisting you go back to the hospital,” Juliet said. “You found us a suspect. We'll take it from here.” She looked at Gus. “Can you drive him home?”

“No problem,” Gus said. “As long as he doesn't throw up. It's a company car and he is looking a little green.”

“I'll make sure to aim out the window,” Shawn assured him. He held out a hand. “Help me up?”

The two of them managed to get Shawn back on his feet. Since his balance was still shaky, they each took an arm and helped him to the Blueberry.

Lassiter was waiting for them, Isabella already in the back of the cruiser parked next to it. “What the hell happened?”

“Shawn almost passed out,” Gus said.

“I did not,” Shawn said defensively. “I just got a little dizzy. That's all.”

“Right,” Lassiter drawled. He looked at Juliet. “I take it we're finally sending him home?”

“Yes,” she said. They leaned Shawn against the car while Gus dug in his pocket for his keys.

“About time,” Lassiter said. “He's been looking like crap all day. If he collapsed that would have met extra paperwork for me to deal with.” Despite his unflattering words, Shawn did detect a note of concern in the detective's voice.

He grinned weakly at Lassiter. “Knew you cared.”

Lassiter glared at him, though he didn't deny what Shawn said.

Gus opened the door for Shawn. “Need any help?”

“I got it.” He needed to preserve some of his dignity, after all. Moving slowly and leaning heavily on the car for support, Shawn managed to get himself into the front seat. He leaned back in the seat, closing his eyes.

“Seat belt, Shawn,” Gus reminded him, getting into the driver's seat.

“Right.” He fumbled with the belt for a few moments before Juliet reached in and buckled him. “Thanks.”

“No problem.” Still bent over him, she reached up a hand to cup his cheek. “Get some rest, alright,” she said softly. “I'll be home as soon as I can.”

He took her hand and kissed her palm. “I'll be waiting,” he said with a slow smile.

Blushing slightly, Juliet backed out of the car and gently closed the door. He watched as she and Lassiter got into the cruiser and pulled away.

“Ready to go?” Gus asked.

“Yeah,” Shawn said. He looked back over at the spa. Something was itching at the back of his mind. Something he had noticed while inside. He felt like he was missing something but couldn't figure out what. “What is it?” he mumbled to himself.

“Did you say something?” Gus asked. He pulled out of the parking spot and headed towards the road.

“Nothing,” Shawn said, dismissing it for now. Reaching into his pocket, he took out the bottle of aspirin and swallowed a couple. He closed his eyes and relaxed back into the seat, waiting for the medicine to kick in.

He'd be able to think better once his head stopped pounding. For now, he would do as Juliet asked and rest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter will be up by Sunday.


	3. Raising the Stakes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bit of a time jump here. And as the chapter title says, things start to get more intense.

Normally Shawn was a big fan of the cell phone. His own had been instrumental in saving his life on several occasions, as well as being a useful tool when solving a case. Right now, he wished the damn things never existed. Then he wouldn't have been woken up from a sound sleep by his girlfriend's ringing phone.

He groaned as the ringing continued. It was her work tone, so the call was probably about a case. He hated when Juliet had to run off in the middle of the night. He felt her trying to move from between his arms. He tightened his hold on her, pulling her back against him and burying his face in her hair. “Ignore it,” he pleaded sleepily.

He heard her sigh. “I can't do that,” she said softly. She twisted in his arms so she could look at him. “You know they wouldn't call if it wasn't important.” He could just make out her face in the dim light, looking tired but resigned to the loss of sleep.

Shawn let out his own sigh. One of the down sides of being a cop was never truly being off duty, always having to be ready to answer the call when it came. Crime doesn't sleep and tonight that meant neither did she.

The fact that she willing accepted this if it meant she could help people was one of the reasons he loved her.

He let her go. She slipped out from under the covers and grabbed her cell phone. She took a few steps away from the bed as she answered. “O'Hara.”

Shawn was very tempted to pull the covers over his head and try to go back to sleep. But his insatiable curiosity would not allow it. Having been woken up, he had to know what the call was about.

Juliet was talking quietly into the phone. He lay there silently, straining his ears to make out as much of the conversation as he could. He heard a few “uh-huh”s, a couple “okay”s, and a deep sigh. “Right. We're on our way,” she said before hanging up the phone.

Shawn sat up as Juliet came back to the bed. “We?” he asked hopefully. If he was going to be woken up in the middle of the night, he at least wanted a case out of it.

“There's been another mugging. The chief wants you at the scene,” Juliet said. She turned on the light and started getting dressed.

Squinting in the light, Shawn got up to get dressed as well. “Not that I'm complaining, but the Chief's been blocking me from this case for almost two weeks,” he said as he struggled to pull his pants on. “What changed?”

Juliet looked over at him, face serious. “This time the victim didn't survive,” she said quietly. “Now we're looking for a murderer.” 

* * *

Shawn was getting a strong feeling of deja vu.

The street blocked off and police officers swarming the scene.

A small crowd of people from the nearby bar, trying to see what was going on.

The victim had even been attacked in the same alley. It seemed there was something about it that their mugger, now killer, really liked. It hadn't appeared all that great to Shawn, but his opinion was admittedly biased.

Feeling unnerved, he made himself focus on the differences instead. There were fewer bystanders, since this attack took place later at night. There were different officers on duty. Most importantly, this time he wasn't the victim.

He took a deep breath, calming himself. He was fine. It was just another crime scene. He could do this.

“You okay?” Juliet asked, a touch of concern in her voice.

“I'm fine,” Shawn said quickly. “Look, there's Lassie.” He headed towards the tall detective before Juliet could ask anything else.

Lassiter was talking to a young woman in her mid-20's. She was dressed for a night out, in a short dress and high heels. Her shoes, lower legs, and hands were stained red with blood. Her face was tear-streaked, her makeup smeared from crying. She seemed barely able to hold herself together. Shawn guessed she knew the victim personally and had been there when the attack happened.

“I'm so sorry,” he said. “It's tough to loose someone close to you.”

She turned to look at him, startled. “Who are you?”

Lassiter sighed. “Miss Parkman, this is Shawn Spencer. He's a consultant with the department. And this is my partner, Detective O'Hara,” he added as Juliet joined them. “Miss Parkman is a friend of the victim and was with her when the murder happened.”

“Please, call me Sarah,” she said quietly. She looked back at Shawn. “How did you know I was close to Kristi?”

“I sensed it in your aura,” Shawn said, putting a head to his head. “The spirits confirmed it.”

“Are you psychic? Can you speak with the dead? How is Kristi?” Sarah asked anxiously.

Shawn hesitated, looking quickly at Juliet. He knew she hated when he played the psychic card, but unless he wanted to quit his job he had to keep up the act. She nodded reluctantly, knowing he had no choice.

He looked back at Sarah. “She's a little hard to hear right now. Too much interference.” He gestured to the busy crime scene around them. “She says she's fine and wants you to know she doesn't blame you for what happened, though she's a little hazy on the details. That's common among the recently deceased.”

“Thank you,” Sarah said gratefully.

“Can you tell us what happened?” Juliet asked.

“We went to the bar to have some drinks, maybe meet a guy. It was getting late, so we were heading back to our car. It's parked around the corner.” She pointed to the end of the street, where Shawn had parked his bike two weeks before.

“We heard a noise, in the alley. I wanted to ignore it, but Kristi thought someone might be hurt. She started down it before I could stop her.” Sarah smiled at them sadly. “That was Kristi. She always tried to help someone if she could.”

Shawn shifted uncomfortably as Juliet and Lassiter both glanced at him. This was sounding very close to what happened to him.

“Neither of us saw him standing there,” Sarah continued. “He grabbed her from behind and put a knife to her throat. He asked her to take off her necklace. She refused.”

“Was it valuable?” Juliet asked.

Sarah nodded. “Kristi had it appraised once. Said it was worth a few thousand dollars. But she would never sell it. Her mother gave it to her before she died.” She shook her head sadly. “She should have just given it to him. It wasn't worth dying over.”

“What happened next?” Lassiter asked quietly.

Sarah took a deep breath. “He was getting angry and tried to take the necklace. She fought against him. Suddenly there was blood everywhere and –” She stopped, breathing hard. “He took the necklace and just left her lying there. I tried to help her, but she was bleeding so much. . .” Her voice trailed off as she struggled to keep from crying.

“There was nothing you could do,” Juliet said gently.

“I could have tried to stop him. Or kept him from getting away,” Sarah insisted.

“Then he might have gone after you too,” Juliet said.

The whole situation was hitting way to close to home for Shawn. He was almost positive this was the same mugger, but he had to be sure. “So what did this guy look like?” Shawn asked abruptly. “Are we talking Steve Rogers before or after the treatment? Any resemblance to the undead or Marilyn Manson?”

“Shawn!” Juliet snapped. He flinched, realizing too late how insensitive the questions sounded.

The girl turned on him. “Do you think this is funny?!” she yelled. “My friend is dead, killed over a stupid necklace. And you're standing there making jokes?” There were tears in her eyes as she glared at him.

“You're right, I wasn't thinking,” Shawn said quietly. “I'm sorry.” She was still glaring at him, tears falling down her face. Juliet put a comforting hand on her shoulder, looking at Shawn with disappointment. A glance at Lassiter showed the same look on his face.

“I'm sorry,” he said again, figuring it was best if he left. He stepped away, leaving Juliet and Lassiter to continue talking to her.

He headed over to the alley. It looked like forensics had finished examining the scene. He approached one of the techs getting ready to leave. “Mind if I take a look?” he asked.

“We're done, so knock yourself out,” the tech replied. “Hope you don't mind blood.” He grabbed his gear and headed off, leaving Shawn alone on the sidewalk. He took a deep breath before he headed into the alley.

It resembled something out of a slasher film. The body was surrounded by a pool of blood and more was splattered against the nearby wall. She was lying face up, unseeing eyes staring up at the night sky. He could plainly see the terror on her face, frozen in the moment of death.

His eyes drifted downwards. Her throat was opened nearly to the bone, a hideous gaping maw through which her life's blood had poured. The angle of the cut told him the killer had been standing behind her, knife in his right hand.

Just like with him.

He felt Juliet come up next to him while he stared at the body. “The friend's description of the mugger matches the previous attacks. It's the same guy,” she said.

“She should have given him the necklace,” Shawn said quietly. He rubbed at the still healing cut on his arm, wondering if the killer had used the same knife.

“Shawn.” He turned to see her looking at him worriedly.

“She was terrified, Jules,” Shawn said. His gaze slid back towards the body. “She didn't deserve this.”

Juliet took his hand. “Come on.” She led him out of the alley and a little ways down the street, away from the bustle of the crime scene. The street was dark here, and quiet at this time of night. Shawn took a deep breath, realizing he was trembling slightly.

Juliet put her arms around him, holding him close. “It wasn't your fault,” she said softly.

“I should have tried harder to get on the case,” Shawn said. “I knew this guy was dangerous. I got lucky. She didn't.” He wrapped his arms around her, closing his eyes. “That could just as easily have been me, lying in that alley.” He took a shuddering breath, his mind showing him how differently things could have gone that night.

“Shawn.” He opened his eyes. Juliet was looking up at him, studying his face intently.

“I might have been able to prevent it,” he said quietly. She didn't ask if he meant her death or his own attack. He wasn't sure which either.

“Maybe, maybe not,” Juliet said. “Obsessing about what could have happened or what you could have done differently won't change anything. You both made a choice to go into that alley because you wanted to help someone. What happened after that is the killer's fault, not yours.” She gently pulled away from him. “I'll have someone drive you home. Get some rest. We're going to need everyone at the top of their game if we're going to catch this guy.”

Shawn nodded. “OK, Jules.” There wasn't anything else he could do here anyway. He'd get some rest, then head to the station first thing in the morning. He was determined to catch this guy before he hurt anyone else.

He wrapped an arm around Juliet's waist, holding her close as they headed back to the crime scene.

* * *

Shawn stumbled into Buzz McNab as he walked into the police station. He did a quick half spin, managing not to spill his coffee.

“Sorry Shawn, didn't see you there,” McNab said.

“Nah, it's my fault buddy. I wasn't watching where I was going,” Shawn said, his words dissolving into a huge yawn.

“Late night?” McNab asked.

“Very,” Shawn said. He had tried to sleep after getting home, only to be plagued by nightmares. He had given up after a couple of hours and headed to the Psych office instead. He covered his mouth as another yawn forced its way out.

Gus came up to them, balancing a tray of coffees and a bag of muffins. “You could have waited for me, Shawn. You know I'm uncoordinated when I'm tired.”

“What are you grumbling about?” Shawn asked sourly. “You got sleep last night.”

“Five hours, Shawn. Then you called and insisted I come down to the Psych office,” Gus said. “You know I need a full eight hours if I'm going to be at my best.”

Shawn sighed and took the coffees from him. “Then you must not have had a good night's sleep in years.” Gus punched his arm, almost making him spill the coffees. “Dude! Watch it!”

“Suck it Shawn!”

The two men stood glaring at each other for a moment, then Shawn yawned again. Since it is impossible to look intimidating while yawning, the tension was broken.

“Sorry dude,” Shawn said. He rearranged his grip on the coffees and held out his fist.

“It's cool,” Gus said, completing the fist bump.

They headed over to Juliet's desk. She was bent over staring at a file and didn't hear them approach. Shawn plucked a coffee from the tray and placed it down in front of her. She jumped, startled, and looked up. “Hey Shawn,” she said, giving him a tired smile.

“Hey yourself,” he said. He noticed her bloodshot eyes and the two empty coffee cups already in the trash can. “Didn't manage to get any more sleep?” he guessed.

“Too busy.” She watched him try to stifle yet another yawn. “I guess you didn't either.”

“Nope.” He held up his coffee. “But that is why God invented caffeine.”

“Spencer!” Lassiter stalked over to Juliet's desk, glaring at him. “Quit causing a distraction and let O'Hara work.” The detective look just as sleep deprived as the rest of them. His eyes were bloodshot and his right hand kept twitching towards his gun at loud noises.

“You guys look tired. Maybe you should take a break,” Gus suggested.

“Not until we catch this guy. Unlike you, our work actually matters,” Lassiter said.

“Wow, Lassie, you're even grumpier than Gus,” Shawn said.

“Can it, Spencer, I'm not in the mood,” Lassiter snapped.

“Fine, then we won't share any of our delicious muffins with you,” Shawn said.

Juliet perked up at the mention of food. “You brought muffins?”

Gus placed the bag on her desk. “Fresh baked this morning,” he said.

Shawn could see that Lassiter was tempted by the tantalizing odors coming from the bag. “How about we all sit down, eat some muffins, and go over the files?” Shawn suggested. He held out the last coffee to Lassiter. “Three creams, four sugars, right?”

Shawn knew he had won when Lassiter took the coffee. The detective took a long sip, letting out a small sigh as the caffeine entered his system. “We'll go into the conference room.”

“Sweet!” Shawn said. He grabbed the bag of muffins as Juliet gathered up the case files.

They all gathered around the table, spreading the files out before them. Shawn grabbed a muffin from the bag and propped his feet up on the table. “So what have we got?” he asked around a mouthful of deliciousness.

“What flavor is that?” Juliet asked, looking at the yellow muffin in his hand.

Shawn grinned. “Pineapple. Special order.”

Lassiter rolled his eyes. “From what we can tell, our guy has attacked 41 people in the last month. All dressed in that ridiculous costume.”

Gus let out a low whistle. “That's impressive.”

“Don't get all dreamy-eyed, Guster. This man is a criminal.”

“Pass me a file,” Shawn said. Gus slid one across the table towards him, snatching one for himself as well.

Not much was said in the next twenty minutes as files were reviewed and muffins were eaten. “This is pointless,” Lassiter said, throwing down a file. “I've been over these files a dozen times. There's nothing here to tell us who this guy is.” He reached for the last muffin, only to have Gus snatch it out from under his hand. “You little –” He stood and started drawing his gun.

“Carlton!” Juliet said warningly.

Lassiter glared viciously at Gus, who looked freaked out, but still did not relinquish his hold on the muffin. A tense moment passed, then Lassiter sighed and reholstered his weapon. “Sorry,” he said gruffly.

Shawn looked at Gus, eyebrows raised. An armed, sleep deprived Lassiter was a little scary. Gus returned the look, nodding in agreement.

There was a light knock on the door. “Sir?” McNab asked, as he poked his head into the conference room.

“What, McNab?” Lassiter asked with annoyance.

“There's been a report of another robbery. The Chief sent a couple of units to check it out,” McNab said.

They had been able to prove that all the victims had a connection to the spa and all but one had had a massage with Isabella. However, there were no prints found on the recording device, and no concrete proof Isabella was involved. They knew the robbers were professionals based on the lack of physical evidence left at the crime scenes. Otherwise, the investigation had stalled while the robberies continued to take place.

Lassiter sighed. “Make sure CSU goes over the scene. Maybe they slipped up this time and left some evidence. Also, see if the homeowners have any connection to the Flowing Springs Spa, no matter how distantly.”

McNab nodded. “Got it, sir. I'll keep you posted.”

Lassiter rubbed tiredly at his eyes as McNab left. “If it's not a mugging, it's a robbery. Can't criminals think of anything else to do in this town lately?” he muttered.

Something clicked in Shawn's mind. “When did the first mugging happen?” he asked urgently.

“About four weeks ago,” Juliet answered.

“And when did the first robbery take place?” he asked.

“Around the same time,” Lassiter said slowly.

“The robberies all took place during the day, right? And the muggings all happened at night.” He stopped, his mind racing as the pieces started coming together.

“What are you getting at, Spencer?” Lassiter asked.

“I think the two cases are connected,” Shawn said. He looked around the table. Lassiter looked skeptical. Juliet and Gus looked a little less doubting, but still unsure of Shawn's statement.

“Think about it. Someone from the spa gets the addresses and access to homes that are empty during the day. He gives the information to his partner, who commits the actual robberies. The police look for anyone at the spa who could be connected, but since he was working at the time, they have a solid alibi.”

“What about the muggings?” Gus asked.

“Same thing, just switch the roles,” Shawn said. “Everyone who was mugged had something valuable on them. Seems a little too convenient to just be random chance. Someone at the bar tips off the mugger to the best people to go after. Once again, they have a solid alibi if the police come checking.”

“That's a pretty good setup,” Lassiter said, nodding slowly. “Too good for this to be their first time using it.”

“They probably go from city to city, leaving before anyone starts putting the pieces together,” Shawn said. “That's why they haven't been caught before.”

“I doubt they use their real names. They probably create a new identity for each job they take,” Gus said. Shawn pointed at him and nodded.

“We'll need to look at who was hired at each of these places in the last few months,” Juliet said. “Though if they've done this before, they probably made sure to start at different times and have at least a few people hired after them before starting their crime spree. At least we can narrow it down to male employees at the spa.”

“We'll also need to get the work schedules for the spa and the bar to see who was free for the crimes,” Lassiter added.

Shawn shook his head. “There's no time.” He gestured to the files. “The mugger has increased his activity, going after two or three people every night. The robberies have increased as well. There have been three in the last two days alone.” He looked at Lassiter intently. “They're getting ready to skip town. Probably after tonight.”

“Why tonight?” Lassiter asked.

Shawn tsked, smirking at Lassiter. “Come on Lassie. The guy has been running around in a costume all month. Today is Halloween. It's his big finale.”

“Of course it is. Why would Santa Barbara ever have a sane killer on the loose?” Lassiter asked sarcastically.

“Trust me Lassie, by the time you sort through all the paperwork, he'll be long gone,” Shawn insisted.

“Then how do you suggest that we catch this guy?” Lassiter asked.

Shawn grinned. “I have an idea.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter is halfway done. I'll have it up for you guys on Tuesday.


	4. Batman the Vampire Slayer

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have been so excited to write this chapter ever since I came up with Carlton's Halloween costume. It makes me laugh every time I think of it.  
> The Doctor Who bit I couldn't resist as I am a huge fan of the show.  
> Enjoy.

Shawn and Juliet walked down the street towards the bar. For once Shawn was quiet, reviewing the two cases in his head. Tonight was their last chance to catch either criminal, so he had to make sure he didn't miss anything.

The robbery earlier in the day had proven to be connected to the previous robberies in the last month. So the thief was still in town. Shawn suspected that despite the mishap the night before, the mugger would be too, ready to make one last score.

Shawn's plan was simple. Have someone go to the bar, act drunk, and tell everyone about some valuable item they had on their person. The rest of them would watch the bar staff to see who acted unusually interested in the news. Then they would leave the bar with the 'victim' walking a predetermined path, with officers lying in wait to catch the mugger when he attacked.

There were a couple of problems. The best ones to identify the mugger and the robber would be those who had worked the case, but there was also the chance that they would be identified themselves, blowing the whole operation. Shawn's solution to this stemmed from a poster he had seen advertizing a costume contest at the bar that night. He, Juliet, and Gus already had costumes, which just left Lassiter to acquire one. That would allow them to observe their suspects without being identified themselves.

The other problem was who would be the bait. The Chief wanted to use Juliet, stating that a woman would appear to be an easier target than a man. Shawn, of course, was against this, volunteering for the role himself. After much heated debate, in which Lassiter proved an unexpected ally, the Chief won with the concession that Juliet would remain in constant visual contact during the entire operation.

Outside the bar, several people paused to give Juliet appreciative looks as they walked past the couple.

“I don't think I like your costume,” Shawn muttered, glaring as yet another person ogled his girlfriend.

Juliet smirked. “It was your idea, Shawn.”

Shawn sighed, looking at his girlfriend. He had to admit, she did look incredibly hot in her Catwoman costume. It was modeled after the one Anne Hathaway wore in the new movie, though Shawn thought Juliet pulled the look off better.

Shawn, of course, had gone with Batman for his own costume, also from the new movie. It had the added bonus of a mask, which would make it harder for any of their suspects to recognize him.

A black cat shot in front of them, nearly tripping Shawn. He glared after the treacherous feline as it disappeared beneath a parked car. “That thing just tried to kill me.”

“It was probably frightened by something. I'm sure it didn't try to trip you intentionally,” Juliet said.

Shawn narrowed his eyes. “Is that so? You haven't been, say, talking to the local cats in an effort to orchestrate my downfall, have you?”

Juliet sighed with exasperation. “I'm not really Catwoman, Shawn, and I've been with you all day.”

“Not true. You had to run home to get your costume. Plenty of time to set up this little assassination attempt.” He crossed his arms as he looked at Juliet, waiting for her to crack.

Juliet smiled. “You know, when you look all stern like that, you do kind of look like Batman.”

Shawn perked up. “Really?”

“And now you blew it,” Juliet said, laughing. “Come on.” She took his arm and led him inside the bar.

The place was packed with people, a large number of them in costume. It seemed the bar's contest was pretty popular, exactly as Shawn had hoped.

“Do you see Gus or Carlton anywhere?” Juliet asked.

“Look for food. Gus can't ignore anything edible, especially if it's free,” Shawn said. Glancing around, he spotted a table covered with bowls of candy near one of the walls. “Over there!”

They pushed there way through the crowd and found Gus next to the table eating a KitKat, a pile of wrappers next to him. “Hey Juliet, nice costume. KitKat?” He held one out to her.

“Thank you Gus,” she said, accepting it with a smile.

“What about my costume?” Shawn asked. He reached for a candy bar, only to have Gus slap his hand away. “Dude, you know those are for everyone, right?”

“You still owe me for the five pounds of Halloween candy that disappeared from the office,” Gus said. “And your costume could be better.”

“It's better than your costume,” Shawn said. “At least I'm recognizable. Who exactly are you supposed to be again?”

Gus was wearing dark pants, a button up shirt, and a brown tweed jacket with elbow patches. He had a red bow tie and a fez perched jauntily on his head.

“I've told you about a dozen times Shawn,” Gus said, irritated. “I'm the eleventh Doctor as portrayed by Matt Smith.”

“Doctor who?” Shawn asked innocently.

Gus just glared at him.

“I think it's a great costume, Gus,” Juliet said.

“Thank you. I'm glad someone appreciates it,” Gus said, looking at Shawn with narrowed eyes.

“How can I appreciate a costume for a show nobody's ever heard of?” Shawn asked.

“The Doctor is a cultural icon in England,” Gus said.

Shawn rolled his eyes. “I meant real people Gus. Nobody on this side of the 'pond' watches that show.” He said 'pond' with a heavy British accent.

“They do to. The show has a large following in the US,” Gus insisted.

“Fifty dollars says you're wrong,” Shawn said.

“Deal.”

Shawn went up to a random woman in the crowd dressed as a sexy cop. “Excuse me, can you help us settle a bet?”

“What kind of bet?” she asked warily.

“Not that kind,” Shawn assured her quickly. Taking her arm, she led him back towards Gus. “Do you know who my friend is dressed up as?” He smirked at Gus, sure this was going to be the easiest fifty dollars he had ever made.

The woman's eyes widened. “You're the Doctor!” she exclaimed. “I really like the eleventh, though the tenth will always be my favorite.”

Shawn sighed, ignoring Juliet's smirk. First the cat, now this. Someone up there was definitely enjoying themselves at his expense.

Gus smiled his kind of creepy player smile. “David Tennant was pretty good.” He snapped his fingers and pointed at her. “Let me guess. Amy Pond's stripogram outfit from series five?”

The woman did a little twirl. “Yup. Do you like it?”

“Totally.”

Shawn pretended to gag until Juliet slapped him on the shoulder.

The woman pulled a slip of paper and a pen out of a pocket, scribbling something. She handed it to him with a sexy little smile. “Call me.” Turning, she gave him a wink before slipping into the crowd.

Gus grinned smugly at Shawn as he put the paper in his pocket. “You owe me fifty bucks.”

“Man, that's so not fair,” Shawn whined. “That's probably the only girl in here who's even heard of the show. Come on, best two out of three.”

“A deal's a deal,” Gus said.

“Jules – ?” Shawn whined, looking to his girlfriend for support.

“He's right Shawn,” she said.

Grumbling he pulled out his wallet and thrust the money at Gus. “Cheated. You definitely cheated. I bet you bribed her before hand to say that.”

“Are you going to blame the cat, too?” Juliet asked cheekily.

Shawn, who had been about to do just that, quickly closed his mouth. Sometimes he wondered if Juliet wasn't psychic.

“Cat? What cat?” Gus asked, looking suddenly worried.

“The tailless football shaped demon who tried to kill me,” Shawn said sourly.

“What color?” Gus asked.

“Black, I think,” Juliet said.

Gus suddenly backed away from Shawn. “Oh no, you are not spreading your bad luck to me. Do you know what today is? Curses have extra strength right now. I need to find a rabbit's foot, a horseshoe, maybe some holy water.”

“Gus, it was just a cat,” Juliet said.

“There's no such thing as 'just a cat' on Halloween, Juliet,” Gus said. “They are the devil's creatures.”

“Dude, would you relax? You won the bet and got a girl's phone number. Clearly if there is a curse, you're not affected,” Shawn said.

Gus did visibly relax at this. “You may be right. But you should be careful. The cat cursed _you_ after all.”

“Don't worry, my hair gel has magic, curse repelling properties as well as making my hair look fantastic,” Shawn said.

“Guys, focus,” Juliet said. “We still need to find Carlton.”

“I think I found him,” Gus said faintly. He pointed behind Shawn, eyes wide.

Shawn turned. He felt his jaw drop in shock, before a wide grin covered his face. “And you said black cats were unlucky. This is like Halloween and Christmas and Leif Ericson Day all rolled into one.” A glance at Juliet showed she was just as surprised as he was.

Lassiter was wearing a long, white robe that flowed all the way to the floor. He had huge white wings attached to his back that kept hitting into people as he struggled through the crowd. The ensemble was topped off with a halo floating above his head.

Shawn's smile widened even further as the scowling angel reached them. “If that's what's waiting for us in heaven, I'm so picking hell instead.”

“Like you could get into heaven,” Lassiter snapped.

“I wouldn't have thought you would pick something so. . . white,” Juliet said, trying not to laugh.

Lassiter glared at her. “It was the only thing left in my size.” His glare shifted to Shawn as the psychic snapped a picture with his phone. “Hey! Give me that,” he said, lunging for the phone.

Shawn jumped back, holding his phone out of reach. “No can do, Lassie. This puppy's going straight to Facebook.”

Lassiter grabbed for the phone again. “Half the department are your Facebook friends.”

Shawn grinned evilly. “Exactly.”

Juliet sighed and plucked the phone out of Shawn's hand.

“Hey! That's mine!” he said indignantly.

“You're not putting that picture on Facebook,” Juliet said sternly. “In fact, I'm deleting it.”

“Thank you, O'Hara,” Lassiter said gratefully.

“No problem,” Juliet said. She held the phone out to Shawn, pulling back slightly as he tried to take it. “No more pictures.”

“But Jules, this is a once in a lifetime chance!”

“Shawn,” Juliet said warningly.

Shawn sighed. “No more pictures,” he said sullenly. He took the phone and put it back in his pocket.

“Anyone seen McNab?” Lassiter asked.

“Not yet,” Juliet said. “Does anyone know what costume he's wearing?”

“He's like 10 feet tall, Jules. He shouldn't be too hard to spot,” Shawn said. He glanced over the crowd, quickly spotting the young cop. “There he is,” he said, waving the man over.

“Hey guys!” McNab said, joining them. He was wearing a coat with hair poking out the sleeves and collar, pointed ears, and a furry tail. His hands were covered in gloves made to resemble wolf paws. He had been trying to go for the classic werewolf look. With his bright smile and easygoing demeanor, he looked more like an overgrown puppy than a vicious monster.

“Wow, detective, cool angel costume. Don't the wings get in the way, though?” McNab cocked his head to the side and Shawn had to resist the sudden urge to scratch him behind his ears.

“Shut it, McNab!” Lassiter snapped.

McNab sighed and looked down. “Sorry, sir,” he said, looking like the proverbial kicked puppy. This time Shawn wanted to hug him and rub his belly until he was happy again. He shook his head, blaming the thought on sleep deprivation.

Lassiter led the group off to the side, away from the bulk of the crowd. Shawn grinned as he unintentionally hit several people in the face with his wings in the process. Lassiter kept his voice low as he outlined the plan. “OK, listen up. O'Hara is going to walk around the bar, making sure to talk about her new engagement ring in earshot of as many of the bar staff as possible.”

Juliet held up her hand, where the cheap department store ring was perched. It was amazing how much the cut glass gems looked like real diamonds.

“She will then leave and walk the predetermined route, where we will have officers waiting should the killer make a move. Hopefully he'll take the bait.” Lassiter glanced at Juliet, looking as uncomfortable as Shawn felt at the idea of a killer going after his partner.

Lassiter fought with his robe, trying to reach his pocket. Shawn slid his hand slowly towards his phone, but stopped when Juliet looked pointedly at him. Lassiter finally pulled out a few wireless earpieces and handed them out to everyone. “Keep these in at all times. If you see anything suspicious, let us know right away.” He looked particularly hard at Shawn as he said this.

“Don't worry Lassie, if I get any psychic vibes, you'll be the first to know,” Shawn assured him.

“All right everyone, let's get to work,” Lassiter said.

Juliet headed for the bar. They rest of them dispersed into the crowd, keeping an eye on Juliet and the bar staff.

There were two bartenders working tonight with the large crowd. One was an older woman who looked tougher than half the guys in here. The other was Henry, the bartender from the night Shawn was attacked. Since he was between customers at the moment, Juliet went up to him and started a conversation. Shawn could see her showing him the ring.

Shawn kept an eye on her from a distance. He didn't want to get too close and have Henry recognize him. He glanced around, watching the other bar staff. So far, nobody stood out to him as a suspect.

His eyes went back to Juliet as she walked away from the bar with a drink, deliberately acting tipsy. She bumped into a few people as she walked, loudly calling attention to herself.

“Your girlfriend is really good at acting drunk,” Gus commented.

“What are you implying Gus?” Shawn asked, bristling.

“Nothing. Just that she really goes into character when she's undercover,” Gus said.

Shawn looked back at Juliet. She was playing the part exceptionally well. If he didn't know any better, he would say she was hammered. “I guess you have a point,” he said grudgingly.

He did another visual sweep of the room. Neither bartender appeared to be watching her now that she had walked away. However, he noticed one of them was looking down at something hidden under the bar's surface.

“It's Henry,” Shawn said, mentally kicking himself for not noticing it before.

“You're dad? What's he doing here?” Gus asked, confused.

Shawn put a finger to his lips, pointing to his earpiece. He lead Gus over to one of the speakers next to the snack table, using the loud noise to cover their conversation. Gus immediately grabbed a bowl of candy corn and started munching on it.

“Not my dad. The bartender.” He nodded towards the bar. “I remember he sent a text about me to a friend the night I was attacked. And I just saw him with his phone again after Juliet talked to him.”

“We should tell Lassiter,” Gus said.

Shawn shook his head. “Not yet. We still need to get his partner. If Henry finds out we're on to him, he could alert the killer and we'll never catch him.”

“Spencer! Are you there?” Lassiter yelled suddenly in his ear.

Shawn winced, taking a few steps away from the speaker. “Dude, take a chill pill. You're practically busting my eardrums here.”

“Then next time answer the first time I call you,” Lassiter replied acidly. “O'Hara is about to leave. I'll be following her. You, Gus, and McNab will stay here watching the staff in case someone tries to bolt.”

“No way. I'm coming too,” Shawn said.

“Spencer, this guy is dangerous.”

“I'm very aware of that, detective,” Shawn said dryly.

There was a short pause. “You're staying here, Spencer. That's an order.”

“Since when do I ever follow your orders?” Shawn retorted.

“Shawn, please listen to him,” Juliet said, cutting in. He could see her across the bar, looking at him. “We don't need anyone else getting hurt.”

“OK Jules,” Shawn said reluctantly. “But promise to be careful.”

“I will,” Juliet said, nodding.

“All right, O'Hara, give us a couple minutes to get in position, then head out,” Lassiter said.

“Got it,” she said. Shawn watched as she slowly started making her way towards the door.

Shawn took out his earpiece, carefully setting it down. He then quickly stripped out of his costume and down to his street clothes.

“What are you doing?” Gus asked.

“There is no way I'm staying back while Juliet is out being bait for a killer, Gus,” Shawn said. He bundled up his costume and shoved it into Gus's arms. “Hold this for me, will yah?” He patted Gus on the back and quickly headed for the door.

“Shawn!” Gus yelled, his shout quickly swallowed by the noise of the crowd.

Shawn watched Juliet walk out the door. He hung back, giving her time to get a decent distance ahead of him, then followed after her.

* * *

Shawn could see one officer lounging against a building up ahead at the corner. Another was across the street, standing in a doorway and pretending to talk on a cell phone. Lassiter had ditched his costume and was trailing Juliet, trying to look like just any other guy walking down the street that night. He was making sure to keep his head down, in case the mugger recognized him.

Shawn kept his head down too as he followed the group down the street. He was sure by now Lassiter knew he was there, but the detective couldn't stop him without breaking his cover. Not that he could have succeeded. It was Shawn's plan putting Juliet in danger and there was no way he was letting her out of his sight.

A man was walking down the street towards Juliet. He had his head down, shoulders hunched underneath a bulky jacket. He wasn't in costume, so Shawn was tempted to just dismiss him. However, there was something about the man that seemed familiar. He watched him closely as he approached Juliet.

He was almost up to her when he stumbled. Acting on instinct, Juliet moved forward to catch him.

It happened too quick for anyone to react. One second, Juliet was helping him regain his balance. The next she was being held flush against him, a knife at her throat.

“Juliet!”

Lassiter drew his gun as Shawn ran up next to him. The other officers hurried over, drawing their weapons as well. The man turned to keep all three cops in view, still keeping a tight hold on Juliet. With his head up his face was now illuminated by the streetlights.

It was Eric Kingston, the receptionist from the spa.

Eric held Juliet in front of him, using her as a shield. “Drop your guns!” When they hesitated, he pressed the knife hard enough against Juliet's neck to draw blood. “Now!”

Glaring, Lassiter slowly lowered his gun and placed it on the ground. The other officers followed suit.

Shawn, unarmed, kept still, eyes on Juliet's face. She looked angry but underneath Shawn could see a hint of fear.

“Kick them away,” Eric demanded. He watched as they did as he asked. “Good.” He reached up and removed the earpiece from Juliet's ear. “These too. And don't even think about reaching for a radio or cell phone.” He drew the knife slightly along Juliet's neck, causing her to wince in pain.

“Let her go Kingston,” Lassiter ordered.

“A pretty little gem like this?” Eric shook his head. “I don't think so.” He leaned his head down, sniffing Juliet's neck. She stiffened under him and Shawn could see the revulsion on her face. His hands clenched into fists as he stood there, powerless to stop him. Eric moved the knife slightly and his head dipped lower as he licked at the trail of blood flowing down her neck.

“Let go of her, you sick freak!” Shawn yelled. He started forward, only to have a strong arm hold him back. He struggled against it, eyes only on Juliet.

Eric looked up from his prey, grinning at Shawn. “What's the matter psychic? Don't like to share?” He gave Juliet's neck another long lick. “Delicious.”

Shawn felt the arm holding him start to shake. A glance at the arm's owner showed Lassiter literally vibrating with anger. “Let. Her. Go,” he growled.

“No.” Keeping the knife tight against Juliet's neck, he reached behind her with the other hand. Whatever he did caused Juliet to freeze in place, a look of fear covering her face. She locked eyes with Shawn and he knew things had just gotten worse.

“He has a gun,” Shawn said quietly. With only a knife, Juliet had a pretty good chance of disarming him and getting away relatively safely, but not with a gun.

“Very good Shawn,” Eric said. He shifted his left hand, bringing the gun into view and pressing it into Juliet's side. He tossed the knife away, no longer needing it. “I may not be a good shot, but even I can't miss at this range.”

Shawn glanced at Lassiter, his fear increasing when he saw the grim look on the detective's face. “You don't want to do this,” Lassiter said darkly.

“I can't believe I'm saying this, but you should listen to him,” Shawn said. “Trust me, this is a bad idea.”

“Oh, I don't know about that. It's working perfectly so far,” Eric said with a grin. He started backing down the street, still keeping Juliet between them. Shawn, Lassiter, and the others followed slowly, keeping back a safe distance. His gun never wavered from Juliet's side, leaving her no chance to get away.

Eric stopped next to an older model Honda. He looked over the three officers. “Give me a pair of handcuffs.”

Lassiter took a step forward. “Stop!” He froze at Eric's shout.

“Throw them to me.”

Lassiter reached into his pocket and removed his handcuffs. He tossed them so they landed in front of Juliet.

Eric nudged Juliet with the gun. “Pick them up. Slowly.”

Juliet carefully bent down and picked up the handcuffs, Eric moving with her to keep himself shielded.

“Put them on. Hands behind your back.”

Shawn could hear the handcuffs ratchet closed as she did as she was told. Eric reached behind her, tightening the handcuffs further and causing her to wince. “Don't want you to escape.”

“Eric, man, just think a minute,” Shawn said, trying to reason with him. He couldn't let them get into that car. “She's a cop. You're going to have the entire police department looking for you. There's no way you're getting away with this. It's time to turn yourself in, before anyone else gets hurt.”

Eric opened the car door, pulling Juliet to stand in front of it. He looked straight at Shawn and smiled.

“Say nighty-night Juliet.”

Shawn heard the thwack as Eric hit Juliet in the back of the head with his gun. His heart stopped as her body went limp, Eric's hold on her the only thing keeping her upright. He quickly shoved her body into the car before turning and opening fire on them. Shawn ducked behind the nearest car to avoid getting hit.

Suddenly the shooting stopped. He heard an engine revving, immediately followed by the squeal of tires against the pavement. Shawn abandoned his hiding place and raced out into the street in time to catch a glimpse of the car disappearing around the corner.

He stood frozen, staring down the empty street.

Juliet was gone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First, next chapter will be up tomorrow, so you don't have to wait too long to find out what happened to Juliet. So enough with the glares already.
> 
> Second, the black cat in the story is actually my cat Shadow. She is a Manx, a tailless breed of cat.


	5. Storming the Warehouse

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know you're all eager to find out what happened to Juliet and probably aren't reading this anyway. But I'm glad to finally get to this chapter. Reaching it has been the driving force behind this story.  
> I hope everyone enjoys it.

_She's gone._

Shawn stared down the street where the car had disappeared. Juliet was gone. That bastard had her, had taken her from right in front of him and he didn't do anything to stop it. He couldn't have done anything. Right? No, he couldn't have. Eric had a gun. If he had tried anything, Juliet could have gotten hurt.

She was already hurt. Shawn remembered the sickening sound the gun made as it connected with the back of her skull. He had watched her crumple towards the ground. Even without a photographic memory, he would never forget that moment. The worse thing was he didn't even know if she was ok. For all he knew, she could be. . .

He sucked in a breath, unable to complete the thought. She was alive. She had to be.

He just needed to find her.

Distantly, he heard Lassiter asking if anyone had seen the license plate on the car. Had he? Shawn thought back, reviewing all the moments the car had been in view. As Eric and Juliet had approached it, he had been at the wrong angle to see the plates. He hadn't seen it when the car was pulling away either.

Without the plates, the car was too close a match to thousands of others in the city. There had to be another way to track them down. A clue to where he was taking her. It was probably somewhere remote or abandoned, but there were too many areas of the city that matched that description. They needed some way to narrow it down.

“Henry!”

Lassiter looked over at him at the shout. “Spencer! What the hell are you talking about? Hey!” he yelled as Shawn took off back towards the bar.

He could hear Lassiter chasing after him, but he didn't slow down. Henry had been Eric's partner. If anyone knew where Eric was going, it was him.

Shawn made it back to the bar in record time. He barged inside, quickly heading to the back. The woman bartender was still there, but Henry was gone.

“Shawn!”

He heard Gus's yell and turned to look at him as his friend forced his way through the crowd. He didn't know what Gus saw on his face, but it made his own turn serious. “What happened?”

“I need to find Henry. The bartender. Where is he?” His voice sounded strange in his ears, lower and harsher than normal.

“Shawn –”

“He took her, Gus. The bastard took Juliet.” Shawn closed his eyes and took a ragged breath, trying to keep a handle on his emotions. He opened his eyes and looked straight at his best friend. “I _need_ to find Henry.”

“I think I saw him head into the back a few minutes ago.” Gus grabbed Shawn's arm before he could take off. “Don't go crazy, dude. Watch yourself,” he said, looking at Shawn with concern.

“Spencer!” Lassiter had finally caught up with him and was forcing his way through the crowd towards them.

“He's in the back!” Shawn shouted, pointing. With an apologetic glance at Gus, he slipped out of his hold and started in that direction, ignoring Lassiter's cries to wait.

There was a small hallway next to the bar that lead to the bathrooms and a storage room. A doorway at the end led outside. As Shawn started down the hallway, Henry exited out of the storage room.

Henry froze for a moment when he saw Shawn, surprise and fear etched on his face. Then he turned and bolted out the back door, slamming it shut just as Shawn reached it.

Shawn struggled with the door a moment before finally getting it open. He exited to the alley behind the building to find Henry already halfway down it and pulling away fast.

The slight delay had allowed Lassiter to catch up with him. “Spencer, hold on,” he said, grabbing Shawn's shoulder.

Shawn shrugged him off. “He's Eric's partner. He might know where Juliet is.”

Lassiter's face hardened. “I'll head up the alley after him. You circle around to cut him off.” He took off after Henry, calling in for any nearby officers to assist.

Shawn ran in the opposite direction. They had reviewed a map of the area earlier when they were determining the route Juliet would walk. He called that map up now, looking for any streets or alleys that would allow him to cut in front of Henry. He took a left at the next corner, running along the cross street.

As Shawn had guessed, Henry was keeping to the back alleys in an attempt to loose the detective and delay backup. He entered the new alley just as Henry came running from the opposite direction.

The man turned to run back only to have Lassiter appear behind him, gun raised.

“Don't move. Keep your hands where I can see them,” Lassiter said. He reached back to pull out his handcuffs, stopping when he remembered he didn't have them anymore.

That one movement snapped Shawn's hold on his temper. He stalked forwards, grabbed Henry and shoved him back against the alley wall. “Where is she?” he demanded, looking into Henry's surprised face. “You were Eric's partner. You know where he is going.” He slammed Henry against the wall, uncaring when he winced in pain. “Where is she?!”

A hand came down on Shawn's shoulder. He whirled around, fist automatically swinging at whoever was behind him.

Lassiter caught the fist inches before it hit his face. “Enough Shawn.” He held Shawn's arm tightly, meeting the younger man's gaze. “You caught him. We'll take it from here.”

Shawn was breathing hard, whether from the chase or the anger and worry coursing through him. Maybe all of the above. He looked at Lassiter, seeing the detective trying to mask the same emotions on his own face. Shawn slowly lowered his arm, stepping back when Lassiter released him. “We have to find her.”

“We will,” Lassiter promised. He glared over at Henry, who shrunk back slightly. “We will.”

Several other officers appeared, heading down the alley towards them. “McNab!” Lassiter yelled. “Get him in handcuffs and down to the station. I want him in an interrogation room ASAP!”

“Check his phone. You should find a text he sent to Eric with Juliet's description,” Shawn said. It should be enough to hold him, at least, and allow Lassiter to question him.

Lassiter nodded slowly, not questioning how Shawn got this information. “Good.” He turned and followed McNab and Henry out towards the street.

Shawn watched them go, leaning against the wall as he caught his breath. He trusted Lassiter to get the information they needed. The man was a king in the interrogation room. Plus Juliet was his partner, making him just as motivated to find her as Shawn was. He almost felt sorry for Henry.

Almost.

Shawn pushed off from the wall and again headed back to the bar. He needed to find Gus and get down to the station. This was one interrogation he didn't want to miss.

* * *

Henry was surprisingly cooperative with the police. He knew he was facing accessory charges for the muggings, kidnapping and murder, along with the burglary charges. He decided his best chance now was to come clean and turn on his partner in the hope of lessening the charges.

At least, that's what Lassiter said when he decided to confess five minutes into the interrogation.

This was the third city where they had used this setup, though the first where Eric decided to dress in costume. Things had started out smoothly, then quickly gone down hill. Eric was getting bolder, taking more risks. After Shawn's mugging he had gotten even worse, having enjoyed the rush of attacking the psychic. Several more people had ended up injured, culminating in the death of the girl last night. Henry hadn't heard from Eric since besides a text telling him the plan was still on for tonight.

When Henry had spotted Shawn at the bar, he remembered what Eric had said about the psychic working for the police. He had tipped Eric off, telling him they should cut and run before they got caught. To which Eric had said he would handle it and asked for Juliet's description. He hadn't known what Eric had planned, but knew he was in way over his head. He had been trying to make a run for it when Shawn and Lassiter had caught him.

There was a warehouse down by the docks that they were using to store the merchandise from the burgled homes until they could find buyers. It had once been owned by a shipping company and was filled with abandoned packing crates, perfect for hiding the stolen goods. It was in a remote part of town and most of the nearby buildings were also abandoned. It was the perfect place to hide out from the cops.

The Honda was sitting in front of the warehouse, just where Henry said it would be.

Shawn and Gus stood back, watching as the police got ready to swarm the building. They were wearing bullet proof vests, but only as a precaution. Neither man was allowed in, a fact Shawn was planning to ignore.

Shawn watched as Lassiter organized the teams. Two headed around the building to enter from the other side. Lassiter himself would be leading the team going in the front. He glanced over at the duo, clearing not trusting Shawn to stay behind this time. He pointed at Spencer, then pointed at the ground, clearly telling him to stay put. Shawn grinned and gave him a thumb's up in acknowledgment. Eyes narrowed suspiciously, he gave Shawn a hard look before leading his team into the building.

Shawn waited a few minutes after they entered before turning to Gus. “Wish me luck, buddy,” he said, holding out his fist.

His friend, knowing it was pointless, didn't try to stop him. “Be careful,” was all he said, completing the fist bump.

Shawn cautiously entered the warehouse, keeping as quiet as possible. The building was full of cops looking for any hint of their suspect. He didn't want to surprise them and get himself shot in the process. The building was a maze of crates and abandoned equipment, leaving plenty of places for Shawn to hide as he snuck past the cops.

He worked his way in deeper, heading for the center of the warehouse. He peeked inside a couple of the crates as he walked past. Most were empty, but some held TVs and other electronics from the robberies.

He spotted Lassiter as he came around a corner, peering around the edge of a crate. He froze for a second, then tried to back away slowly before he was spotted. He must have made some noise, because Lassiter suddenly swung around, pointing his gun at Shawn's chest.

“Hey, I know we don't exactly get along, but isn't this a little extreme?” Shawn asked.

Lassiter glared at Shawn as he lowered his gun. “Spencer, I thought I told you to stay outside!” he hissed.

“Did you really expect me to listen?” Shawn asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Just stay back and keep out of the way,” Lassiter said. He turned back to peer around the crate. Shawn crept up next to him and looked himself.

Eric and Juliet were twenty yards away in an area enclosed on three sides with crates. It gave the police only one avenue of approach, which Eric could easily defend against. It also meant Eric could only escape in one direction, effectively boxing him in. They were at a standstill.

Shawn's eyes focused on Juliet. She was sitting up, leaning back against a crate as she watched Eric pace in front of her. Shawn was glad to see she was conscious, though he could see streaks of blood in her hair from where she had been hit. He struggled to suppress the blaze of anger he felt towards the man who did that to her. He needed to keep control of himself this time if he was going to save his girlfriend.

He saw her say something, though he couldn't hear what it was from this distance. It must have angered Eric, because he turned and hit her hard across the face with his gun.

Shawn started forwards, only to be held back by Lassiter. “Let me go!” he hissed, struggling to get out of his grip.

“Get a hold of yourself Spencer,” Lassiter said. “Running out there half cocked is only going to get you both killed.”

Shawn jerked himself out of Lassiter's grip with a glare but stayed put. The detective was right, as much as he hated to admit it. He needed to come up with a plan first.

Unfortunately, Shawn was out of time. Eric had heard the scuffle. He reached down and jerked Juliet to her feet, holding her in front of him. The gun was pressed firmly into her side. “Who's there?” he shouted.

Shawn and Lassiter froze, barely breathing. They watched as Eric took a few steps forward, peering into the warehouse. “I know you're out there. If you want to keep your girl in one piece, come out now.” He shook Juliet hard, causing her to release a cry of pain.

Shawn saw red and had to take several deep breaths to keep himself in check. Lassiter looked at him worriedly but this time Shawn was able to hold himself back. Barely.

“Does anyone have a shot?” Lassiter asked quietly into his earpiece. He swore softly and Shawn guessed the answer had come back negative.

“One last chance. Show yourself!” Eric shouted.

“I need your handcuff keys,” Shawn said. He had a plan. Well, more of an idea. A thought, really. But it was more than the police seemed to have and he was not going to stand by and watch this bastard hurt Juliet again.

When Lassiter hesitated, Shawn took action. He quickly dug through Lassiter's pockets, catching the detective by surprise. Before he could protest, Shawn found the keys and took a step back, shoving them in his own pocket. “Thanks Lassie.” Dodging Lassiter's grab for him, he stepped out from behind the crate.

“Spencer, get back here!” Lassiter hissed.

Shawn ignored him and continued moving forward, hands raised to show he was unarmed. Eric watched him approach, eyes flicking to the shadows in case this was a distraction. He stopped Shawn with a jerk of his head when he was ten feet away.

“Ah, the psychic. I should have known you would come for your girl,” Eric said with a grin.

“Let her go, Eric,” Shawn said calmly.

“Why should I do that? I know you didn't come alone. The police are watching us as we speak, waiting for the chance to take me out.” He shifted Juliet closer to him, casting another nervous glance at the shadows. He didn't appear nearly as confident as he had on the street. Shawn should be able to use that towards his advantage.

“It's over. We talked to Henry. We know all about your plan with the muggings and the robberies.” Eric gave a start at those words, licking his lips nervously. “You need to turn yourself in. Don't make it worse on yourself.”

“Worse than killing that girl?” Eric asked suddenly.

Shawn could hear the guilt and remorse in his voice. It seemed hurting people wasn't so great when they ended up dead. “I know it was an accident. You just wanted to scare her, hurt her a little.” He kept his voice soft and soothing, trying to sound sympathetic.

“She was struggling too much. My hand slipped,” Eric said. He took a deep breath and looked steadily at Shawn. “I didn't mean to do it.”

Shawn nodded. “I believe you.” He saw Eric relax slightly and figured now was the time to implement his plan. He slowly slid his hand into his pocket.

“Stop that!” Eric shouted, catching the movement. He dug his gun deeper into Juliet's side, making her grimace in pain.

Shawn brought his hand back up, the keys dangle from one finger. “I just want to make sure she's ok. It's hard to tell while she's wearing those handcuffs.”

Eric nodded. “Come closer, slowly. And keep your hands up.”

Shawn approached slowly, meeting Juliet's eyes, silently asking if she was ok. Though she was obviously in pain, she nodded slightly, lips quirking in the tiniest of smiles. He gave a small smile back, relieved.

Eric stopped him when he was a couple feet away. “Give me the keys.”

Shawn shook his head. “You won't be able to open them one handed. Let me do it.” He held his breath, forcing himself to appear calm and in control as he waited for Eric's response.

“OK.” He twisted Juliet around so she was facing Eric, handcuffed hands now facing Shawn. “No funny business.” He cocked his head towards the gun pressed to Juliet's side.

“No funny business,” Shawn promised. He carefully stepped forward and took Juliet's hands. He gently removed the handcuffs, taking a moment to rub her chaffed wrists.

Shawn took a hasty step back as Eric quickly twisted her back around. “See? She's fine.”

Shawn took a deep breath. He had gotten Juliet uncuffed, so now he just needed to get her away from this psycho and let the police handle the rest. “You need to let her go.”

Eric tightened his grip on Juliet. “No.”

“There are a dozen officers out there, waiting for you to make a wrong move. They have the building surrounded. There is no way to escape.” He let that sink in before continuing. “The police don't take too kindly to those who attack one of their own. If you let her go and come quietly, I promise you won't get hurt.”

Eric eyes were darting around the room, trying to see where the officers Shawn had mentioned were hiding.

“Listen to him, Eric,” Juliet said softly. “It's your only option.”

Eric's eyes settled on Shawn's face. “You promise?”

Shawn nodded. “I promise.”

Eric slowly released his hold on Juliet, giving her a small shove towards Shawn. “Go.”

“Thank you Eric,” Shawn said gratefully. Eric nodded, still looking around nervously, as he started leading Juliet away.

“There's an opening in about thirty feet. We'll duck behind there and let the officers swarm in,” Shawn said quietly. As far as he could tell, Lassiter was the closest officer and he was still a good twenty feet past the hiding spot.

“Sounds good,” she said, pain and weariness evident in her voice.

Shawn kept a close eye on her and Eric as they kept walking. They were almost to safety when Eric spotted the first officer moving in and panicked.

Eric raised the gun, swinging it wildly, before it settled on Juliet's exposed back.

“NO!” Shawn jumped in front of her, pushing her out of the way.

Two shots rang out. One hit him in the back where is was absorbed by the vest. It was painful and would leave a large bruise, but not life-threatening.

The other bullet hit him in the left arm, blazing through the deepest part of the muscle before exiting. He bit back a cry and kept moving, needing to get Juliet to safety. He got them behind a stack of crates as the police returned fire.

Panting, he looked at Juliet, finally able to get a good look at her. “Are you ok?” His eyes flickered from the cut on her neck to the bruise on the side of her face. He could also see a small amount of dried blood in her hair when she turned her head. She seemed to be holding her right arm carefully against her body, though he could see nothing obviously wrong with it. All minor injuries, as far as he could tell.

“I'm fine,” she replied. She carefully moved past him, looking out on the floor. “It looks like they got him.”

Shawn nodded, leaning back against a crate. With the adrenaline of the rescue fading, the pain in his arm was getting more and more intense. He could feel the blood flowing down his arm and streaming onto the floor. He closed his eyes, trying to breathe through the pain.

“Shawn?”

At Juliet's worried inquiry, he opened his eyes. Once he did, the world started to spin. “I think I need to lay down.”

“Shawn!” She caught him awkwardly with one arm as his legs gave out, quickly lowering him to the ground. His arm hit the floor as she eased out from under him and he couldn't hold back a cry of pain.

“O'Hara!” Lassiter's voice rang out.

“Over here!” Juliet answered frantically. “And call an ambulance!” She checked Shawn over, quickly finding the blood his dark clothing had masked until then. He whimpered as she tried to examine the wound. “I need to see how bad it is.”

“I'd say pretty bad,” Shawn said, clenching his teeth. He had been shot before, so he had some familiarity with the amount of pain that entailed, but the weakness and lightheadedness were hitting him faster than last time. He was smart enough to guess what that meant. “Make that very bad,” he gasped.

Lassiter came around the crate. “What happened?” he demanded.

“Shawn was shot,” Juliet said. “Left upper arm.” She swallowed before continuing. “He's bleeding pretty heavily.”

Lassiter knelt down, pulling out his knife. “Only Spencer would get injured wearing a bullet proof vest,” he muttered. He quickly slit Shawn's sleeve, baring the injury for everyone to see.

“Oh, man,” Shawn moaned, quickly looking away. His arm was drenched in blood and more was pouring steadily from the wound.

Lassiter cursed, quickly pulling off his vest and jacket. “Move back,” he told Juliet. Folding the jacket, he carefully lifted Shawn's arm. “This is going to hurt,” Lassiter warned as he wrapped the jacket around it, pressing hard on both wounds.

Shawn struggled in Lassiter's grasp, screaming as it felt like a red hot poker was being driven through his arm. Lassiter held him down, his grip never weakening. “Calm down! If I don't apply pressure you're going to bleed to death.”

Shawn gritted his teeth, willing his body to allow this torture to happen. He felt a hand grab his right one, holding it tightly. He looked up into Juliet's face, seeing the worry and fear there.

“O'Hara, I need you to check on that ambulance,” Lassiter said.

Juliet glared at Lassiter. “I'm not leaving him.”

“If he doesn't get help soon, he's going to die,” Lassiter said bluntly. “Now go!”

Juliet paled at his words. “OK.” She bent down and gently kissed Shawn's forehead. “I'll be back soon. Hold on Shawn.” With one last worried look, she ran off to track down the paramedics.

“You could have been nicer,” Shawn said. “She's worried.”

“Shut up Spencer,” Lassiter snapped. “She wouldn't be worried if you hadn't gotten shot. That was a stupid stunt you pulled.” Despite his words, Lassiter sounded more worried than angry.

“It worked,” Shawn whispered. “She's ok.” The pain was starting to fade and everything was going soft around the edges.

Lassiter met his eyes briefly before looking away. “Yeah, she is,” he said softly. “That still doesn't excuse how stupid that was.”

“Wasn't thinking,” Shawn murmured. He was having trouble keeping his eyes open. “I couldn't let her get hurt.” The urge was getting too strong. He figured it couldn't hurt to let his eyes close, just for a second.

“Stay awake, Spencer,” Lassiter said loudly. Shawn snapped his eyes open, looking up at him. “O'Hara would have my head if I let you die after you saved her life.”

“Sorry,” Shawn muttered. “Wouldn't want you getting into trouble because of me.”

“It wouldn't be the first time,” Lassiter said. “Just stay with me.”

“I'm not going anywhere. You still have my arm,” Shawn said dazedly. Being awake meant more pain and Shawn winced as Lassiter adjusted his grip on his arm.

“You'll be fine,” Lassiter said gruffly. “You'll be up and bragging about being the hero in no time.”

“Hope so,” Shawn murmured. He could hear a commotion in the distance. The paramedics, he thought lazily. He was too tired to care. He could feel his eyelids dropping.

“Stay awake, Shawn,” Lassiter said.

“You used my name,” Shawn said sleepily. He let his eyelids close. The pain was starting to fade again.

“Shawn! Damn it, open your eyes!”

“Shawn?” That was Juliet's voice. He tried to rise towards it, but he was already too far gone. “Shawn! Wake up!” He felt a hand grab his, squeezing gently. He returned it, surprised at how much effort it took.

More voices, arguing with Juliet. Then new people, poking and prodding him. Moving him. The grip on his arm changed ownership and the resulting pain was able to bring him back enough to open his eyes.

Two medics were working quickly on him. They already had him on a backboard with an oxygen mask over his face. “Jules?” he said, voice horribly weak.

She appeared next to him. “They're about to move you. I'm going with you to the hospital.” She tried to smile at him. “You're going to be fine.”

Shawn nodded weakly, hoping she was right.

“We need to move him now,” one of the paramedics said urgently.

“I love you Shawn,” Juliet said, looking down at him with tears in her eyes.

She was pulled away before he could answer. The world was fading away again. He heard the paramedics talking urgently, then felt himself moving. Everything seemed to be happening from a distance. He let his eyes close, unable to fight the blackness anymore.

His last thought was of Juliet's tear streaked face looking down at him.

_Love you._

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've always wanted to see in the show Shawn be the hero and rescue Juliet for a change. Since it has yet to happen, he gets to be the hero here.  
> Chapter 6 is almost finished and will be up tomorrow. I did promise the story would be finished by Halloween, after all.  
> *inches towards door* So, uh, I guess I'll be going then. *ducks flaming pineapple as flees room*


	6. Sweet Resolution

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last chapter. I can't believe it's finally here.  
> I know you're all eager to see what happened to Shawn, so I'll save my notes until the end.

Beep. . . Beep. . . Beep. . .

 

_What is that?_

 

Beep. . . Beep. . . Beep. . .

 

_It's kind of annoying. I wish it would stop._

 

Beep. . Beep. . Beep. .

 

_Oh great, now it's going faster. What the hell is that though?_

 

Beep. . Beep. . Beep. .

 

_It's too quiet to be an alarm. It kind of sounds like my phone when the battery starts to die._

 

Beep. . Beep. . Beep. .

 

_OK, this has to stop. I can't sleep with that noise, but I don't want to get up. Where's Jules? Maybe she can figure it out._

 

Beep. Beep. Beep.

 

_Juliet._

 

Memories started coming back to him:

Juliet with a knife to her throat.

Juliet being shoved into a car.

Juliet being held hostage again, this time with a gun.

Shawn talking to Eric, getting Juliet away from him.

A gunshot, then pain. Lots of pain.

Juliet looking at him with tears in her eyes.

 

Beep.Beep.Beep.

 

_Juliet!_

 

Shawn's eyes snapped open. He groaned, shutting them quickly as the bright light set them on fire. Who the hell needs lights that bright?

He heard a chair scrape and someone moving next to the bed. “Shawn?”

He opened his eyes more cautiously this time. The world was still too bright and everything was a blur. Slowly, as his eyes adjusted, the light became bearable and the room came into focus. He remembered getting shot, so he wasn't surprised to find himself in a hospital. It was the person sitting next to the bed he wasn't expecting.

“Dad?”

His voice came out as a croak, barely audible. Henry opened a bottle of water and stuck a straw in the top. He held it up to Shawn's mouth. “Slow sips,” he ordered.

The cool water soothed Shawn's parched throat. After a few sips Henry pulled the bottle away and put it on the table.

Finally able to speak, Shawn asked the most important question on his mind.

“Where's Jules?”

“Sleeping,” Henry said. He shifted his chair so Shawn could see the couch against the far wall.

She had changed and showered since the last time he saw her. Her right arm was in a sling and there was a bandage on the side of her neck. The bruise on the side of her face seemed more prominent in sleep, the colors vivid against her pale skin.

Shawn looked back at his father. “Is she okay?”

“She has a mild concussion and a dislocated shoulder, along with the cut on her neck,” Henry said. Shawn nodded, for once appreciating his father's tendency not to sugarcoat things.

Henry shifted in his chair and Shawn could sense a lecture coming on. “Where's Gus?” he asked quickly, hoping maybe he could postpone the yelling until later.

“I sent him home to get some rest,” Henry said. Damn, so much for a rescue by his best friend. “Shawn, what the hell were you thinking?”

Shawn sighed, knowing there was no stopping this now. “He was going to hurt her, dad, what was I supposed to do?”

“Let the cops do their job,” Henry said bluntly. “I know there were at least a dozen officers in that building, all of whom are trained for hostage situations.”

“They were all just standing around letting Eric do whatever he wanted to her,” Shawn shot back.

“There is a procedure for these types of situations, Shawn. None of which is to place yourself in the line of fire with an armed suspect,” Henry said.

“I was wearing a vest,” Shawn said.

“A vest doesn't make you invincible,” Henry said.

“I know.” Both men paused for a moment, thinking about the truth behind those words.

“Anyway, it worked, didn't it? Juliet's fine,” Shawn said, breaking the silence.

“Except you got yourself shot in the process,” Henry said.

“It's not like I planned for that to happen,” Shawn said defensively.

“No, I doubt you planned at all. You just jumped in, half-cocked, like you always do and hoped it would all work out,” Henry said scathingly.

“I had to do something. He could have killed her!” Shawn said.

“Instead he almost killed you. Hell, for a few minutes there he succeeded,” Henry said.

Shawn froze. “What?” he asked faintly.

Henry sighed, rubbing a hand over his head. “You lost a lot of blood. Enough that your heart stopped right before you reached the hospital. They almost didn't get it going again.”

“I was dead?” It seemed surreal to him. He was sitting right here, breathing and everything. Dead people didn't do that. Dead people ended up in the morgue, getting cut up by Woody. He shivered at the thought of how close he came to that fate. “Is my heart okay?”

“They ran some tests after I told them your history. Everything looked normal,” Henry said.

Shawn sighed in relief. “Good.”

“You scared the crap out of me, Shawn,” Henry said gruffly. “Don't ever do that again.”

“He was going to shoot Jules,” Shawn said, looking over at her. “I didn't even think, I just moved. I couldn't let her die.” He shifted on the bed, wincing as the movement sent a pain shooting through his arm.

“How's the arm?” Henry asked.

“Stings a bit. You know, gunshot wounds and all,” Shawn said, shrugging. He barely held back a whimper as the movement caused his arm to throb painfully.

Henry rolled his eyes. “I'll go get the doctor. He wanted to know when you woke up.” He got up and walked over to the couch, gently shaking Juliet awake. “Shawn's up,” he said quietly.

She looked over at Shawn, blinking away the last vestiges of sleep. “Shawn,” she whispered, a smile spreading across her face.

Henry helped her up and over to the chair he had just vacated. “I'll be back in a couple of minutes,” he said, making sure she was settled before leaving the room.

Juliet reached out and gently took Shawn's hand. “Hey,” she said softly.

“Hey,” he said back, just as softly. He closed his fingers around her hand, squeezing carefully.

He took a deep breath. “Give it to me straight. How bad is it?”

“The bullet tore a hole in your brachial artery. You almost bled out on the way to the hospital. In fact, your heart stopped right before we got here.” Juliet swallowed hard, looking away. Shawn vaguely remembered her saying she was going to ride to the hospital with him before he passed out at the warehouse. So she must have been there when he flat lined.

“Jules, it's okay. I'm fine now,” Shawn said softly.

“I almost lost you,” she said, voice thick. She looked at him, tears forming in the corners of her eyes. “You were dying right in front of me and all I could do was watch it happen.”

Shawn sat up awkwardly in the bed, ignoring the pain in his arm. “Come here.” Mindful of her shoulder, he pulled Juliet towards him as she broke down, sobs wracking her body. He felt guilty for causing her so much pain and worry on top of her own kidnapping ordeal. He rubbed her back soothingly as she let out all the pent up emotions from the last couple of days, wishing there was more he could do.

“What happened after I got here?” Shawn asked quietly once the tears had stopped.

Juliet pulled away slowly and rubbed her eyes, before once again grabbing Shawn's hand. “They had to perform surgery to repair the artery. Because of the blood loss, they weren't sure when you would wake up. You were asleep for two days.”

“Two days? How's my hair? You know I get really awful bedhead,” Shawn said.

“Your hair is fine,” Juliet said. She let go of his hand to run her fingers through it, ruffling it slightly. “No worse than it usually looks.”

“Hey, my hair is one of my seven best features,” Shawn said indignantly. Juliet smiled at him and he couldn't help smiling back, glad to see her happy again.

“Ah, Mr. Spencer. Finally awake I see,” said a young man as he entered the room. Henry entered behind him, staying back by the door. “I'm Dr. Wyatt and I've been treating you since you arrived.”

“Call me Shawn. Mr. Spencer is my father,” Shawn said, almost automatically. “Aren't you a little young to be a doctor?”

“I graduated high school early. Top of my class.” He went over to Shawn and started checking his vitals. Juliet stepped back to give him room. “How's the arm?”

“Not bad but it's getting there,” Shawn said. It hadn't hurt much when he first woke up, but the longer he was awake, the more it started to throb.

“I'll get the nurse to bring in something for the pain.” Wyatt took out a tool and pricked the ends of Shawn's fingertips. “Can you feel that?”

“Yeah.”

“Good,” Wyatt said, nodding. “Now grab my fingers and squeeze as hard as you can.”

Shawn did, wincing slightly as the test made the pain in his arm increase.

“Very good.” Wyatt grabbed the chart from the end of the bed and jotted down some notes. “There doesn't appear to be any nerve damage from the injury. Though it will take a few weeks for the muscle to heal and for you to regain full use of that arm.”

“Great, so can I go now?” Shawn asked.

“You had to receive multiple transfusions and your red blood cell count is still a little low. I'd like to keep you a couple more days to make sure there are no complications,” Wyatt said.

“He'll stay,” Henry said from his position by the door. He gave Shawn a hard look. He knew how his son liked to sign out AMA, so would know be keeping an extra close watch on him.

Shawn sighed, which quickly turned into a huge yawn.

“That would be my cue to leave,” Wyatt said. “Get some rest. Your body is still recovering. I'll send the nurse in with the pain medication, which should help you get to sleep.”

“Thank you, doctor,” Juliet said, resuming her seat next to Shawn.

Wyatt gave her a polite nod as he left the room.

“I'm gonna call Gus. He wanted to know the minute you woke up,” Henry said. He left as well, shutting the door behind him.

An awkward silence descended on the room. “So, are you going to lecture me now?” Shawn asked finally.

Juliet shook her head. “I figure Henry will probably yell enough for all of us.” She took Shawn's hand again, stroking it gently. “Promise me you won't do that again.”

“I can't,” Shawn said.

“Why not?” Juliet asked.

“I won't make a promise I know I'm going to break,” Shawn said. “I'm never going to just sit back when you're in danger, Jules. Especially if it's my fault.”

“I'm a cop Shawn. I'm in dangerous situations all the time,” Juliet said.

“Don't remind me,” Shawn muttered, looking away.

“Thank you.”

Shawn looked up at her, startled. “For what? I got you into this mess.”

“You saved my life. If you hadn't jumped in the way, those shots would have hit me instead. Without a vest, they probably would have killed me.” She took a deep breath, looking Shawn in the eyes. “Thank you.”

“Anything for you Jules,” Shawn said with a slow smile. “Just don't make a habit of getting kidnapped by crazed muggers, okay?”

“Deal. No more crazy muggers. I've learned my lesson,” Juliet promised. She looked at Shawn speculatively. “What did you learn through all this?”

Shawn thought for a moment. “Bullets hurt?”

“You didn't learn that the last time you were shot?” Juliet asked.

“Apparently not.” Juliet was still looking at him, waiting for an answer. “How about, don't trust creepy guys that hit on your girlfriend?”

“Then you wouldn't be able to trust half the guys in the city,” Juliet said.

“That many? Man, it's going to take Gus and I forever to teepee that many houses,” Shawn complained.

“Try again.”

“I learned black cats really are cursed,” Shawn said.

“Shawn,” Juliet said, exasperated.

“Think about it. That cat only ran in front of you and me. And who were the only two people to get hurt during this entire thing?” He pointed to Juliet and himself. “Plus I lost a bet to Gus. What more proof do you need?”

“Forget it,” Juliet muttered.

Shawn looked down at their joined hands, squeezing hers gently. “I learned I need to be more careful because I have a really awesome girlfriend I can't stand the thought of losing and who feels the same about me,” he said quietly. He looked up at her, smiling wryly. “How's that?”

“Good,” Juliet said with a smile.

The nurse came bustling in right then, ruining the moment. She was young, blonde, and attractive, which would be great if his girlfriend wasn't sitting right there next to him. “Just need to give you your pain meds sweety,” she said. She injected the medicine into his IV and gave him a quick pat on the shoulder. “They should kick in in a couple of minutes. Wyatt said to give you the good stuff.”

“Thank you,” Juliet said, a bit stiffly. Shawn tried to hide a grin as he realized his girlfriend was jealous.

“No problem. He'll probably be asleep soon. Are you staying with him? I can get you a cot, if you like.” The nurse said this with such earnest friendliest, Juliet couldn't stay mad.

“No, we're fine for now. Thank you for the offer,” she said.

“OK. I'll be around if you need anything.” With a little wave, she left the room.

Something Juliet said earlier was floating in Shawn's head. “If I've been asleep two days, that makes it Nov. 2nd, right?” he asked. Juliet nodded. He groaned, closing his eyes. “That's just so not fair.”

“What's the matter?” Juliet asked worriedly.

He looked up at her, pouting. “I didn't get a single piece of Halloween candy this year.”

She rolled her eyes. “I find that hard to believe.”

“It's true,” Shawn insisted. “Between the muggings and the robberies, I never had time to get any, especially on Halloween.”

“What about the five pounds of candy that went missing from the office?” she asked pointedly.

“Ah, about that.” Shawn looked down, picking at the blanket. “Do you remember that jack-o-lantern made entirely out of candy someone left at the police station?”

“I should have known that was you,” Juliet said. She looked at him quizzically. “How did you get it to the station?”

“I bribed my dad with the leftover candy to let me borrow his truck. I may have also agreed to help with the yard work this weekend.” He grinned suddenly, looking down at his arm. “Though it looks like I can't to that now. Too bad.”

“You didn't eat a single piece?” Juliet asked skeptically.

“Nope. I made it when you kept me under house arrest with that concussion. I wasn't really in the mood to eat it, what with the frequent bouts of nausea, but I was bored, so I did what any normal person would do,” Shawn explained.

“Because a normal person makes a two foot high sculpture out of Halloween candy,” Juliet said.

“Exactly. So I suffered through the whole candy centric holiday without a single piece of sugary goodness,” Shawn said, pouting again.

“Maybe I can fix that.” Juliet got up and went to her bag next to the couch. When she came back, she held a single Hershey kiss in her hand.

“Just one piece?” Shawn asked piteously.

Juliet smiled mischievously. “One should be enough.” She unwrapped the candy and placed it on her tongue. It was already starting to melt as she closed her mouth and leaned down towards him. Their lips met in a slow, sensual kiss, the sweet chocolate heightening the experience. In the background Shawn could hear the heart monitor speeding up again. He blocked it out, focusing instead on Juliet's tongue sliding against his own.

They pulled apart slowly, both breathing faster than normal. Shawn looked up into his girlfriend's blue eyes, thinking he would never be able to look at a Hershey kiss quite the same way.

She smiled down at him. “Still upset?”

“I don't know. Maybe we should try it again,” Shawn said. His grin turned into a yawn as a wave of exhaustion hit him.

“You should get some sleep,” Juliet said gently.

“I'm not tired,” Shawn said stubbornly before he was overcome by another yawn.

Juliet smiled. “Sure you're not.” She leaned down and kissed him briefly on the lips. “We can always do this again when you wake up.”

“Deal,” Shawn said sleepily. He patted the bed next to him on his good side. “Care to join me?”

Juliet hesitated, glancing at the door. “I don't think I should.”

“Please? I'll sleep better knowing you're there. Besides, you look like you could use a nap yourself,” he said as Juliet tried to stifle a yawn. “Please Jules?”

“OK.” She got up and went around the bed. She carefully climbed in, cuddling up against his side, using his shoulder as a pillow. He wrapped his arm around her carefully, sighing in contentment as he closed his eyes.

“Night Jules.”

“Night Shawn. I love you.”

He smiled. “I love you too,” he whispered softly before drifting off to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So now it's done. I hope everyone enjoyed it.
> 
> A huge, ginormous thank you to Redwolffclaw for betaing this story. You rock girl!
> 
> Thank you to everyone who left reviews. They meant a lot to me and kept me going through the stress and the sleeplessness while getting this story done on time.
> 
> There will be a sequel. Shawn and Juliet go to Miami to spend Thanksgiving with the O'Haras. During the visit, they receive some unexpected news.  
> I should start posting it in a couple of weeks.
> 
> Last chance to let me know what you think.


End file.
